At LoveFrom, design exists as a form of deep care—a philosophy where obsessive attention to detail meets poetic intention, where functional objects aspire to emotional resonance, and where the spaces between things matter as much as the things themselves. The collective operates as a small, intensely collaborative studio that takes on only projects they genuinely connect with, allowing them to maintain a craftsman's relationship with everything they create, whether it's a physical product, digital interface, or architectural space.

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In an airy converted warehouse in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood, a small team gathers around an object so seemingly simple you might miss its significance. It's just a door handle—a prototype machined from a solid block of aluminum—but the conversation surrounding it has the intensity of artists discussing a sculpture at the Louvre. "Look at how the light travels across this radius," says Jony Ive, gently rotating the handle to demonstrate. "There's a narrative here—how your hand first approaches, then engages, then activates the mechanism. Each moment has its own distinct emotional quality." The team falls silent, studying the object with an almost reverent focus. This is LoveFrom, the design collective Ive founded after his 27-year tenure at Apple, and this level of attention to the seemingly mundane reveals their fundamental approach to creation.

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"We don't think of ourselves as providing a service," Ive explains, settling into a custom-designed chair in their light-filled meeting area. "We're pursuing a particular way of looking at the world and bringing things into it. Our clients become our partners in that pursuit."

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The Meaning Behind the Name

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The name "LoveFrom" itself offers insight into their philosophy. Derived from a closing that Steve Jobs would use—"With love, from Steve"—it encapsulates the emotional investment the team places in their work. "Objects carry the energy and intention of those who make them," says Ive. "The name reminds us that what we create should come from a place of genuine care. That's not sentimentality—it's about the integrity of the process." This integrity manifests in LoveFrom's selective approach to projects. Since its founding in 2019, the collective has worked with Airbnb on their redesigned app experience, Ferrari on vehicle concepts, and various confidential projects that team members allude to but won't directly discuss. "We say no far more than we say yes," notes Chris Wilson, one of the collective's designers who followed Ive from Apple. "That's not elitism—it's about ensuring we can give everything we have to the things we do take on."

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The Workshop of Slow Discoveries

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What immediately stands out about the studio's process is its pace. While tech design often valorizes speed, LoveFrom operates with deliberate slowness. Conversations unfold without rushing to conclusions. Materials are handled with contemplative appreciation. Ideas are allowed to incubate. "We're comfortable with long periods of not knowing," explains Ive, pointing to a wall of explorations for a client project—dozens of subtle variations on a single form, each minutely different from the last. "Most studios try to rush to certainty. We try to extend the period of discovery."

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This approach particularly shines in their work with materials. The studio houses a materials library with hundreds of samples—woods, metals, fabrics, polymers—each cataloged with scientific precision. Team members regularly handle these materials, understanding their physical properties through touch rather than just visual observation. "Digital tools are wonderful, but they remove you from the physical reality of what you're creating," says Emily Richardson, LoveFrom's materials specialist. She describes two seemingly identical aluminum samples. "One feels slightly warmer, more inviting. That tiny difference completely changes how someone responds to a product."

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This materials sensibility directly influenced their work with Airbnb, where digital interfaces were conceived with material-like properties—weight, texture, and responsiveness that mimicked physical objects. "We talked about the 'weight' of gestures and the 'temperature' of interactions," shares Brian Chesky, Airbnb's CEO, when discussing their collaboration. "It completely changed how we thought about our digital experience—not as screens but as spaces that should feel good to move through."

The Discipline of Reduction

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On a long table in the design studio sits a progression of models for an unspecified product. Moving from left to right, each iteration becomes visibly simpler, with fewer elements and cleaner lines. It's reduction as a discipline—the gradual elimination of everything unnecessary until only the essential remains. "We often begin by making something more complex than it needs to be," Ive acknowledges. "That gives us the material to then carve away. The process of reduction requires you to deeply understand what matters."

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This reductive approach extends beyond aesthetics to how products function. In a demonstration of a digital interface they've designed (for a client they ask not to name), there are remarkably few options presented at each decision point. The experience feels calming rather than limiting. "Each additional option creates cognitive load," explains Sarah Kim, one of LoveFrom's interaction designers. "We work hard to make the right options available at the right moment, rather than overwhelming people with possibilities. That requires us to accurately anticipate what someone will need and when they'll need it."

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This anticipatory design requires immense empathy—a quality that surfaces repeatedly in how team members discuss their work. "We spend as much time talking about how something will make people feel as how it will function," notes Ive. "Those aren't separate considerations—they're completely intertwined."

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The Invisible Details

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Perhaps the most revealing aspect of LoveFrom's approach is their obsession with details most people will never consciously notice. Team members can spend hours discussing the precise curvature where two surfaces meet on a physical product prototype. "This radius communicates whether something feels friendly or cold, precious or approachable," explains Marcus Williams, one of their industrial designers. "Most people won't articulate that consciously, but they'll feel it immediately." This attention extends to sounds, smells, and even the kinesthetic feedback of moving parts. The team might record dozens of slightly different clicking sounds for a mechanical component, each variation conveying a subtly different emotional quality.

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"The sound of engagement tells you about the quality of what you're using," Ive says. "It's a form of communication between the object and the person." This holistic sensory approach was particularly evident in their collaboration with Ferrari, where they worked not just on visual design elements but on the entire experiential journey. "They thought about the sound of the door closing, the smell of the materials, the first touch points when entering the vehicle," shares Flavio Manzoni, Ferrari's Senior Vice President of Design, when asked about the partnership. "They approach cars as emotional machines, not just visual objects."

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The Craft of Collaboration

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While Ive's name draws the spotlight, LoveFrom operates as a genuinely collaborative studio. The organization maintains a flat hierarchy where ideas are evaluated on their merit rather than who proposed them. "Jony creates a space where the best idea wins, regardless of where it comes from," says Wilson. "But that requires everyone to articulate their thinking clearly. You can't just say 'I like this better'—you have to explain why it matters." This culture of articulation means team members develop a remarkably precise vocabulary for discussing their work. Conversations include references to "emotional affordances," "gestural narratives," and "material honesty"—terms that might sound pretentious elsewhere but here serve as useful shorthand for shared concepts.

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The studio also maintains close relationships with specialized fabricators, engineers, and material scientists—extending their collaborative approach beyond their immediate team. "We see manufacturers as creative partners, not just vendors," Ive explains. "Some of our most important breakthroughs have come from fabricators saying 'what if we tried this instead?' That only happens when you treat those relationships with respect."

The Purpose Behind Perfection

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Why does this level of obsessive care matter in a world where most products are disposable and quickly forgotten? Ive considers this question carefully, gently turning over an aluminum door handle prototype. "Objects shape how we experience being alive," he says. "Each time you interact with something thoughtfully made, it communicates that care back to you. That's a form of respect for human experience." He places the handle down precisely, aligning it with the edge of the table. "We live in a world full of objects that shout for attention but offer little reward for that attention. We're trying to create things that become more meaningful the more time you spend with them—things that reveal their care slowly, over time."

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This philosophy extends beyond individual products to how entire systems and environments are designed. Their work with architectural spaces focuses on the sequence of experiences, the transitions between moments, and how spaces support human connection. "A room isn't just about how it looks—it's about how it makes people behave toward each other," says Ive, referencing their own thoughtfully arranged studio. "Does it encourage conversation or silence it? Does it create hierarchy or equality? These are design decisions with profound implications."

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The Future of LoveFrom

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Despite their impressive client roster, LoveFrom maintains an intentionally small team of around 20 core members. They have no plans for rapid expansion or taking on significantly more projects.

"Growth for its own sake doesn't interest us," Ive states. "We want to maintain the quality of attention we can give to each project. That becomes impossible beyond a certain scale."

Instead, their ambition lies in the lasting influence of their approach—creating objects and experiences that demonstrate a different way of relating to the designed world. A quote framed on the wall, attributed to the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, reads: "The purpose of life is to be defeated by greater and greater things."

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When asked about it, Ive smiles. "That's what drives us—the pursuit of problems worthy of our care and attention. We're looking for challenges that demand everything we have." In an industry often driven by disruption for its own sake, LoveFrom offers a quietly revolutionary alternative—a vision of design not as novelty or spectacle, but as a profound expression of human care, translated into the objects and experiences that shape our daily lives.