Apple has appointed John Ternus as its new chief executive officer (CEO), succeeding Tim Cook, who is stepping down after 15 years at the helm of the tech giant.
Ternus, currently Apple’s head of hardware engineering and a 25-year veteran of the company, will assume the role on 1 September, while Cook will transition to the position of executive chairman.
Tim Cook has led Apple as chief executive since 2011, taking over after co-founder Steve Jobs stepped down due to health reasons, shortly before his death.
Cook will remain in the role through the summer to oversee a smooth handover to John Ternus, after which he will transition to supporting the company in a more limited capacity, including engaging with policymakers globally.
Cook’s decision to step away from the CEO position comes after months of speculation that Apple was looking for successor.
Tim Cook described the job as “the greatest privilege of my life” and during his leadership tenure he led the company to become one of the most valuable in the world.
In 2018, Apple became the first public company to reach a $1 trillion (£740bn) valuation, and its market value has since grown to $4 trillion.
According to BBC report, Cook called Ternus a “visionary” executive with “the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator and the heart to lead with integrity and honour”.
He further said, “He is without question the right person to lead Apple into the future.”
John Ternus emerged as a leading candidate to succeed Tim Cook last year, following the departure of long-time chief operating officer Jeff Williams from Apple.
Over his 25 years at Apple, Ternus has been involved in nearly every major product launch, including all generations of the iPad, multiple iPhone models, and the introduction of AirPods and the Apple Watch.
He also played a key role in overseeing the transition of Mac computer processors to its own silicon.
Ternus also worked under Steve Jobs, whom he consider his “mentor.”
His appointment comes at a time when Apple is facing growing competition in artificial intelligence and semiconductor technology, especially from Nvidia, which has recently surpassed Apple in market value, as well as from companies like Meta Platforms in emerging fields such as augmented reality.
John Ternus will be responsible for driving deeper integration of artificial intelligence across Apple’s ecosystem, particularly within the iPhone, which is widely considered the most successful consumer product of all time. Earlier this year, Apple also partnered with Google to integrate its Gemini AI model into Siri, underscoring its push to enhance its artificial intelligence capabilities.
