Why it matters: Andrew Kim's minimalist design philosophy has been used at Microsoft and Tesla. Now it seems, Apple wants to use his talents for their own projects. Kim's previous work as a Tesla senior designer has fueled rumors that Apple is once again thinking about building its own car.

Some of our readers may recognize the work of designer Andrew Kim. His minimalist rendition of Microsoft's design language back in 2012 may have arguably been more compelling than Microsoft's own take. Now it seems he has been snatched up by Apple after previously working as a senior designer at Tesla.

After he posted his alternate Metro design language on his blog, Microsoft actually hired him to work on the Windows 10 user interface, Xbox One S, and HoloLens. Following his stint in Redmond, Kim became a senior designer at Tesla working on the vehicle designs for the Model S, X, 3, and other Tesla products. Now, Kim's Instagram page confirmed that his first day at Apple was December 11th.

This move to poach Kim away from Tesla could signal a few things. First, it could mean that Apple really is working on a car and wants Kim to help design it given his work at Tesla. It could also mean that Apple wants Kim to work on hardware/UI design for Apple's computing products including the iPhone and Mac lines. That might be less plausible given that Jonathan Ive is the head of design but it is worth noting considering Kim's work on the Xbox and HoloLens.

The news surrounding the mythical Apple Car has been all over the place. We first heard of Apple's rumored plans for a car with Project Titan in 2015. Then it was reported that Apple was shifting to self-driving cars instead of building its own car. However, news that Apple had hired ex-Tesla engineering lead, Doug Field, reigniting rumors of Apple building it's own car. Today's news about Andrew Kim only adds fuel to the rumor fire.