Sir Jony Ive, the renowned designer behind Apple’s iconic iPhone and iPad, has invested in Cruz, a startup specializing in portable blending devices. iBlender anyone?
The startup was founded earlier this year by former Apple employees Matthew Moore and Dakota Adams, both of whom were part of Apple’s manufacturing design team.
Cruz’s flagship product, the $129 BlenderCap, is a battery-powered attachment that can be screwed onto standard sport bottles like the Hydro Flask, transforming them into mobile blenders. The device is aimed at carving out a new product category in the already crowded market of blenders and juicers.
“We are trying to make products in the spirit of Apple,” said Moore, speaking to Bloomberg. He emphasized the focus on higher-quality products and aesthetics, contrasting many existing blender products that he said “will end up in a landfill.”
While the terms of Ive’s investment were not disclosed, he is not the only former Apple executive to back the startup. Nick Forlenza, former Apple Vice President of Manufacturing Design, and Devin Wenig, former eBay CEO, have also invested in Cruz.
Ive, who is not directly involved in the product’s design, praised the co-founders for their “extraordinary supply chain expertise and depth of knowledge about industry practices and processes,” describing it as “extremely rare and incredibly valuable.”
The BlenderCap is built on a “cell to system battery” module, a proprietary technology that allows for more power in a compact space. The device can blend at least seven 30-ounce bottles per charge and uses USB-C for recharging, similar to the latest iPhones.
