Lovefrom, the creative company founded by former head designer Apple Jony Ive, played a role in the development of Rivian’s first electric bike, according to many sources talking to TechCrunch.
For about 18 months, a handful of love from staff has worked alongside Rivian’s design team and engineers on a Skunkworks program led by former Specialized Chris Yu. Lovefrom’s work on the work of microbes ended in the fall of 2024, according to sources.
Lovefrom and Rivian refused to comment.
Rivian’s Skunkworks program, which eventually grew up in a group of about 70 people from Apple, Google, Specialized, Tesla and Rei Co-op, started earlier this year with a new name and $ 105 million for funding by Eclipse Ventures.
The start of the microbialability, also called, has not yet demonstrated the first designs of the vehicle. In interviews with TechCrunch, Rivian Rj Scaringe (who is on the board) and Yu was Cagey about what the first vehicle of the new company would look like.
“There is a position. And there are two wheels. There is a screen, and there are some computers and a battery,” Scaringe said in March. He has also said that he will be a “bike”, a description confirmed by sources.
But both Scaringe and Yu talked about a much bigger vision of one, where he could theoretically face almost any microscopy form. The new company is supposed to reveal its first plans at an event later this year. A representative also refused to comment on his bike or any connection to Lovefrom.
When the electric “bike” is revealed, it is likely that the fingerprints of the Ive will be everywhere.
Ive is best known to be the design power behind the iPhone and myriad of other Apple products, and more recently, for his work with Sam Altman and Openai. But his collaboration with Rivian is not his first invasion of the transport industry.
Ferrari’s parent company announced In 2021 that the IVE operation will help develop next generation vehicles of the Italian manufacturer. Ive also participated in Apple’s Secret Program. Were Reportedly one of the main supporters To center Apple’s long -term car work around autonomy, while other people in the company pushed a more traditional electric car. Apple abandoned this project at the beginning of last year.
Sources told TechCrunch that Ive’s lovefrom has acted as a Rivian adviser in the past, including the redesigned entertainment system and retail, among other things, according to two former employees with knowledge of the relationship. But her participation in what will also happen was a more structured and dedicated effort, another source familiar with the relationship.
The Skunkworks program began to form at the beginning of 2022 with a directive to investigate whether Rivian’s EV technology could be condensed into something smaller and more accessible than electric trucks, trucks and SUVs.
Initially, the small team worked with Rivian designers to develop a product that could escalate in different types of vehicles. A key design challenge was how to make a bike -like motorcycle while maintaining the increased aesthetic Rivian has become known.
Until Lovefrom participated in the project in early 2023, a lot of work was completed, according to sources that said they helped improve the prototypes.
The relationship was described as a “pretty tight” collaboration between the Skunkworks team, its lovefrom staff and industrial designers based on Rivian headquarters in Irvine. This group examined everything, including the user interface and UX for the bike.
The Industrial Design Team in Lovefrom, which has extensive experience with careful and smart packaging, participated in particular, according to a source, which noted that the team had brought an interdisciplinary and international perspective on the project.
