jonathan-ive

Time recently sat down with Apple's senior vice president of design, Jonathan (Jony) Ive to discuss everything from his time before Apple when he worked at another company called Tangerine, to his time spent working directly with Steve Jobs and more. In it, Ive stresses the importance that Apple puts on the design and quality of its products. He even goes to great lengths to say Apple digs into the design aspects of a phone, computer or tablet that other companies might never even consider – like the inside.

"We're surrounded by anonymous, poorly made objects," Ive argued. "It's tempting to think it's because the people who use them don't care – just like the people who make them. But what we've shown is that people do care. It's not just about aesthetics. They care about things that are thoughtfully conceived and well made. We make and sell a very, very large number of beautiful, well-made things. Our success is a victory for purity, integrity – for giving a damn."

Ive also touched on the subject of copycat products, which Samsung has been publicly accused of creating. He said it's "theft" and that when a company decides to copy an Apple product they're also copying "thousands and thousands of hours of struggle."

As for new products, like the rumored iWatch, Ive had no comment. "Obviously I'm not going to talk about that," he said. "It's a game of chess, isn't it?" He didn't explain what he meant, though perhaps he's suggesting that Apple has already planned out several future moves – the new product categories that Tim Cook has already promised us. Time had one last question for Ive, and that was whether or not Apple's best product is still in the pipelines. "I hope so," Ive said.

For more of the interview, including what it was like to work with Steve Jobs from the beginning, head to the source story below.