The Cook Era Ends, Ternus Succeeds as Apple CEO

Apple has appointed John Ternus, Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, as its next CEO, with CEO Tim Cook transitioning to the role of Executive Chairman.

According to various international media reports, Apple released a statement on the 20th announcing that 50-year-old John Ternus will assume the role of CEO on September 1, while Cook, after stepping down, will serve as Executive Chairman.

Cook stated: "Serving as Apple’s CEO and being trusted to lead such an extraordinary company has been the greatest honor of my life."

Cook joined Apple in 1998 and took over as CEO from founder Steve Jobs in 2011.

During Cook’s 15-year tenure—he holds a business school background—Apple’s product lineup was upgraded and the brand was given a new era-defining significance. The company’s market value grew more than twentyfold, closing above $4 trillion on the 20th, making him an exceptionally successful corporate CEO.

However, during Cook’s tenure, it is undeniable that there was a lack of truly novel products and services to wow consumers. Projects such as self-driving cars and the Vision Pro mixed-reality headset failed to see breakthroughs, and with the recent rapid development of artificial intelligence, Apple’s performance has not stood out—presenting significant challenges ahead for Ternus’s leadership.

The Wall Street Journal described Ternus—an engineer by training—as “amiable” and noted that his personality is similar to Cook’s; unlike the late co-founder Steve Jobs, he does not yell at employees. Ternus started at the grassroots level in Apple and has been with the company for 25 years, leaving his mark on a wide range of products.

The changing global environment and the wave of artificial intelligence will be major challenges as he leads this tech giant into a new era.

Ternus’s innovative capabilities were validated last fall when he led the launch of the brand new “iPhone Air” model. This was seen as the most significant upgrade to Apple’s core product line since the iPhone X in 2017.