Jony Ive to design "the next generation of Airbnb products"

Apple's former chief design officer Jony Ive has been hired by online rental service Airbnb to develop new products and services for the platform.

Ive, who left Apple last year after almost 30 years to establish an independent design company called LoveFrom, will act as a design consultant for the online holiday rental website.

"Today, I'm thrilled to announce that Jony and his partners at LoveFrom will be engaging in a special collaboration with me and the Airbnb team," announced Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky.

"We have made the decision to work together through a multi-year relationship to design the next generation of Airbnb products and services."

The long-term partnership will see Ive collaborate with Airbnb to overhaul its website and app as well as developing additional services.

According to the BBC, the current rating system for vetting guests and properties is one of the initial elements that Ive and LoveFrom will focus on.

"Design can facilitate trust and enable more human connection"

Ive joined Apple in 1992 and led the development of some of the company's seminal designs, including the iMac, iPod and iPhone.

At his new company, LoveFrom, Ive continued working with Apple, with Airbnb becoming its first new major client announced publically.

"Jony and I have been good friends for many years, and he has been gracious enough to provide me with guidance and advice," continued Chesky.

"We share the same belief in the value and importance of creativity and design. We each believe not only in making objects and interfaces but in crafting services and experiences."

Chesky hopes that Ive and LoveFrom will help Airbnb build trust in the brand, which suffered financially during the coronavirus lockdown due to restrictions limiting bookings.

"We've seen how design can facilitate trust and enable more human connection, something people are desperate for during an unprecedented time of loneliness and disconnection," said Chesky.

Speaking earlier this year, Chesky said that the impact of the pandemic will change the travel and tourism industries forever.

"Travel as we knew it is over," Chesky told American news channel CNBC during an interview with Deirdre Bosa. "It doesn't mean travel is over, just the travel we knew is over, and it's never coming back."

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