Sebastiaan de With, co-founder of Lux and the creative force behind acclaimed iPhone apps Halide and Kino, officially announced on Wednesday that he has joined Apple’s design team.
A Return to Cupertino
This appointment marks de With’s second tenure at Apple. During his previous time with the company, he contributed to the development of iCloud and the Find My service. Before establishing Lux alongside Ben Sandofsky in 2016, de With built an extensive design portfolio working with major industry players, including Sony, T-Mobile, and Mozilla.
“So excited to work with the very best team in the world on my favorite products,” de With shared in a post on X.
Some big personal news: I’ve joined the Design Team at Apple.
So excited to work with the very best team in the world on my favorite products. ✌️ pic.twitter.com/9gzU4ziIJ7
— Sebastiaan de With (@sdw) January 28, 2026
Future of Halide and Lux
Despite the departure of his co-founder, Ben Sandofsky confirmed in a Reddit post that Lux will continue the development of Halide. The company recently launched a public preview of Halide Mark III, which prioritizes “Looks”—a new feature designed to emulate the distinct aesthetics of classic film cameras.
Shifting Dynamics in Apple’s Design Division
De With joins the tech giant during a period of notable internal transition. The Liquid Glass design language, introduced with iOS 26, failed to meet widespread critical acclaim. Furthermore, the division recently saw the departure of Alan Dye, the former chief of user interface design, who moved to Meta in December.
The leadership structure is also evolving. As reported by Bloomberg last week, John Ternus—widely considered a potential successor to CEO Tim Cook—assumed oversight of both hardware and software design toward the end of last year.
