According to Bloomberg, the industrial designer is leaving the Cupertuno company for an artificial intelligence startup, marking another high-profile departure from the tech giant’s once-storied design group.

Chowdhury, who spent more than six years at Apple, played a central role in shaping the iPhone Air and even fronted its two-minute design-focused launch video during Apple’s September keynote, an assignment typically reserved for the company’s most trusted design talents.

His reported exit has supposedly caused a stir inside Apple, according to people familiar with the matter, both because of his growing influence and because it follows a series of departures that have steadily reshaped the design division since Jony Ive’s 2019 exit.

Many veterans from the Ive era have either retired or joined other companies - including Ive’s own firm, LoveFrom - leaving Apple’s design ranks filled increasingly with newer hires and junior designers.

Chowdhury’s supposed departure is said to not be tied to the iPhone Air’s commercial performance, despite its muted sales.

The model has been praised for its lightweight engineering and materials work, and Apple is reportedly planning a second-generation version for 2027.

Still, the timing adds to the sense of upheaval around Apple’s design organisation, which has undergone major structural shifts in 2025.

Last week, longtime COO Jeff Williams - who previously oversaw the design group - also left the company.

Meanwhile, Alan Dye’s user-interface design team has faced internal turbulence and further departures.

As part of a broader leadership reorganisation, Apple said in July that all design teams would now report directly to CEO Tim Cook, a move intended to streamline decision-making and reassert design’s central role in product development.

Chowdhury’s exit underscores both Apple’s evolving design culture and the fierce talent competition driven by the AI boom, a trend increasingly reshaping Silicon Valley’s creative and technical workforce.