Meta poaches senior Apple designer Alan Dye, behind ‘Liquid Glass’ interface
Dye is headed to Meta, where he will become the company’s new Chief Design Officer starting on December 31.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a Wednesday social-media post that Dye will lead a new creative studio that brings together design, fashion, and technology.
“We plan to elevate design within Meta,” wrote Zuckerberg, who did not specify which products Dye will work on.
Earlier this year, Dye was a key figure in redesigning Apple’s software interface for the iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch. Called Liquid Glass, the design was unveiled during the Worldwide Developer Conference in June. Apple described it as an “elegant” new interface featuring translucent buttons, updated app icons, and fluid animations. Dye called it the “next chapter” of the company’s software and said it “sets the stage” for the next era of Apple products. However, Liquid Glass has received mixed responses from users. The interface rolled out as part of the latest iOS 26 operating system, which powers the newest iPhones and iPads.
Dye took over user-interface design and became one of the design studio’s leaders in 2015 when Apple’s former industrial designer Jony Ive stepped back from his day-to-day role. Dye joined Apple in 2006 as a marketing and communications executive and later worked on software for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and Vision Pro. Stephen Lemay, who replaces Dye, has been with Apple since 1999.
Meta has been headstrong in its vision to create a new generation of AI devices, and the company has impressed critics and users with its Ray-Ban smart glasses. Apple does not currently offer a similar product, although it is rumored to be working on one, with a reported release date set for 2027.
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Investors have been pressuring Apple to look beyond the success of the iPhone; however, the company has been struggling to replicate that level of success with any of its newer products. Its much-hyped Vision Pro mixed-reality headset has been a commercial failure, representing a setback for the California-based company.
