Steve Jobs once said that technology comes in seasons. That new ascendant technology could be considered to be in its “spring,” and that over time, as better, more capable technology emerges, the older technology goes through its summer, its autumn, before eventually being replaced. Such is life. And so Apple CEO Tim Cook has announced that after 15 successful years at the helm, he’s handing over the reins of the greatest company on Earth.
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Cook’s Departure 🛫
Tim Cook is known for calm, careful planning and well executed decision making. It’s perhaps unsurprising then, that he chose now of all times to hand over the baton. He’s been CEO for 15 years, has reached the typical retirement age of 65 and this year just so happens to be Apple’s 50th anniversary. One could almost say the stars aligned. And as you might expect from such a pragmatic decision maker, the transition has been carefully considered. John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering will be stepping up to the role of CEO on September 1st. Cook has served as a mentor to Ternus for several years and over the coming months, a calm transition will take place.
Cook isn’t leaving Apple. He’s not going far at all. He’s stepping into the role of executive chairman of Apple’s board of directors. He’ll continue to play a vital role at Apple for many years to come no doubt, offering his advice and support to Ternus. Per Apple’s press release, Cook will also handle some of Apple’s government and political affairs. It’s a wise move. Cook is well liked and respected by US President Donald Trump and can continue to engage on policy on behalf of Apple. Meanwhile, new CEO John Ternus can focus on running the company without direct political association. It would be naive to think that Ternus won’t be involved in politics at all. Policy drives a lot of business decisions and strategy. Lawmakers expect engagement from chief executives, not just board members. But Cook’s continued presence does serve as a helpful buffer for Ternus. For investors, it’s about as perfect a transition as they could hope for.
At 50 years old, Ternus just so happens to be the same age that Cook was when he became CEO. And that allows a long 10-15 year tenure. Cook will likely serve on the board for the next decade in his new role as executive chairman. Unlike Cook, however, Ternus is an engineer. Very much a hardware guy. While Cook is known for operational excellence, Ternus is much more hands on and for some, that will be exciting news. Steve Jobs was known for his hands on approach to product development. Ternus has quite literally been in charge of Apple’s hardware teams for years now. He’s experienced and has been heavily involved in the product roadmap for a long time.
One last hurrah 🎉
Before Cook formally hands over the responsibilities of CEO to Ternus, he’ll lead Apple through WWDC26. It’ll give fans, investors and customers the opportunity of a proper farewell to the Cook era. But it will also serve as an opportunity for Cook to right the wrongs of the early innings of Apple Intelligence. WWDC26 is expected to be focused primarily on Apple’s AI plans and the fully reworked Siri that had long been promised. And you can bet that Cook will want to ensure this is well executed.
This past week, Google confirmed that a Gemini powered version of Siri with debut later in the year. In the short term at least Apple is prioritising capability over control of the system. Apple prefers to own the primary technology. Now you could argue that the underlying AI LLM isn’t the primary technology. That Apple Silicon and its built in neural engineer is the primary technology. And that the LLM is just software. People will have different views on that. But either way Siri and AI will be the main focus of Cook’s last WWDC as CEO.
One thing not to expect is too much focus on Cook himself. By his own admission, Apple rarely looks back and is always looking ahead. This year, Apple took the opportunity to mark its 50th anniversary and to be a bit more reflective. I’m sure there will be recognition of this milestone year at the WWDC opening keynote. And no doubt Cook will share a few, brief personal remarks. But don’t expect the event to focus too much on nostalgia. Instead Apple will try to tell a story of a revitalised approach to AI where features and their benefits take the spotlight. They’ll provide some level of detail on the technical underpinnings. But mostly in developers sessions. The main keynote is for everyone, including everyday customers. Customers don’t care how new AI features work, as long as they work well, respect their privacy and offer tangible benefits.
Peeking around the corner 📐
Apple’s silicon architect Johny Srouji is taking over Apple’s hardware engineering team with immediate effect. While Ternus will take over as CEO on the 1st of September. Just in time to oversee the launch of Apple’s first foldable iPhone a couple of weeks later. In his current role as SVP of hardware engineering, Ternus has played a key role in its development. As CEO, I think we’ll see Ternus lead Apple to create more experimental hardware. Not to say that it won’t be polished. We already know that Apple is prioritising design, durability and performance for the iPhone fold. But I do think we’ll see Apple enter more categories once Ternus takes the reins.
Both Cook and Ternus have both proudly claimed that Apple has an incredible product pipeline. It was a big factor, according to Cook, as to why now was the right time for Ternus to take over. According to Bloomberg analyst Mark Gurman, Apple does indeed have an ambitious product pipeline. Several of these new devices are centred around AI and ambient computing. There will be aggressive expansion into the home with more capable, ambitious smart home hubs, robotics and security systems that lean heavily on Siri and personalisation. Apple is also doubling down on wearables. Some will be camera equipped devices that feeds contextual data into its ecosystem. One example? AirPods. It might sound a bit weird granted for AirPods to have cameras. But it’s intended that they gather ambient data to create personalised user experiences.
Ternus recently lauded the Apple Vision Pro. He talked about the inevitability of the digital world and physical word intersecting. And we already know that Apple is working to deliver more comfortable form factors that take advantage of visionOS like smart glasses.
I think we’re still very much in the early innings of spatial computing. We are super excited about it. The Vision Pro is an extraordinary product. As Joz said, it’s like we reached into the future and pulled it into the present. And people are continuing to find exciting new use cases for it. There’s a lot of compelling stuff in enterprise, in medicine, in other things, and that’s going to continue to grow. It’s fun, we’re at the beginning of the journey.
Longer term, Apple has a clear ambition to move beyond the iPhone itself, with augmented reality and personal AI positioned as a potential successor platform. Ternus is the man who will lead that that charge.
AI sits across all of this as a foundational layer rather than a standalone product. To quote an excellent, recent interview with Tom’s Guide, Ternus’ view on AI is practical:
‘We never think about shipping technology. We always think about ‘how can we leverage technology to ship amazing products’
This answer was in response to my question about Apple’s thinking around AI and Apple Intelligence. And it’s clear that Ternus is not interested in the current arms race around AI models. He’s more interested in the experiences they create with the devices are available now and what’s on the horizon.
Mark Spoonauer, Tom’s Guide
Now clearly the team at Apple and by extension Ternus, have their work cut out for them. Their first job is fixing and advancing Siri. And Siri is going to be key to not only future iterations of Apple’s current product line, but also new categories. Apple wants to enable useful, intuitive and personal user experiences. Ternus isn’t interested in the LLM race. Taken together, you can start to build a picture of the direction of travel under Apple’s new leadership. New categories, deep ecosystem integration, AI as a benefit (not just a feature) and a continued expansion of services.
All of this sounds exciting but Apple has to execute on these ambitions well. Especially around Siri. But if Ternus can lead Apple to pull it off, it’ll cement Apple’s place as the most admired and important brand for years to come. The fun as they say, is in the journey. Let’s see where it goes.
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