Liquid Glass design executive Alan Dye is leaving Apple
File: Then-Apple Creative Director Alan Dye celebrates the launch of the July Issue at the new WIRED office in San Francisco, California, on June 24, 2015.
Kimberly White | Getty Images
Applesaid Alan Dye, head of user interface design. reportedly to join MetaThere has been a significant shift in executive talent in Silicon Valley.
Apple confirmed Dye’s departure, and CEO Tim Cook said in a statement that the company prioritizes design and has a strong team. In the statement, it was stated that Dye would be replaced by experienced designer Stephen Lemay.
“Steve Lemay has played a key role in the design of every major Apple interface since 1999,” Cook said in a statement.
Compared to other Silicon Valley companies, Apple has always emphasized design as one of its strengths to customers and investors. Apple features design executives to discuss interface changes at the company’s launch events.
Most recently, Dye revealed in June that Apple’s software interface for iPhones, Macs and Apple Watch, called Liquid Glass, was being redesigned. The company described it as an “elegant” new design with translucent buttons, updated app icons, and fluid animations.
Dye said this is the “next chapter” of the company’s software, which “sets the stage” for the next era of Apple products.
“Our new design blurs the lines between hardware and software to create an experience that is more enjoyable than ever before, while also being familiar and easy to use,” Dye said at the launch.
Reviews were mixed About the Liquid Glass updateShipped with new iPhones in September.
Apple announced liquid glass during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 9, 2025 in Cupertino, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
For years, Apple’s design was embodied by current executive Jony Ive, who left Apple in 2019. with OpenAI On artificial intelligence hardware with Sam Altman.
Dye took over user interface design and became one of the leaders of the design studio in 2015 when I step back from a day-to-day role. According to LinkedIn, Dye started at Apple in 2006 and has worked on software for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Vision Pro.
It was also partly responsible for the first iPhone in 2017, which eliminated the home button at the bottom of the device and instead used a software-based swipe up gesture.
Meta has said in recent years that it wants to become a major hardware manufacturer, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said Apple is one of the social networking company’s biggest competitors.
Meta currently produces several virtual reality headsets under the Oculus brand, and recently had its first hardware success with Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which are stylish sunglasses equipped with cameras and the ability to run an AI model that can answer questions. According to a statement made by Ray-Ban parent company in July, sales of the device tripled last year.
Bloomberg ranks first reported the move.
The report stated that Dye will be responsible for a new design studio at Meta, where he will be responsible for hardware, software and AI integration design. Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
