Kamal Ghorui
Apple CEO Tim Cook will step down from his role after nearly 15 years, the company said. After the announcement, Apple shares declined less than 1% in late trading on April 20. Cook, 65, will hand over the role to John Ternus who has been leading the company’s hardware division. The decision comes as Apple prepares for major changes in the tech industry driven by artificial intelligence. Ternus is seen as a long-time insider at Apple, with a focus on hardware design and product development.
Market reaction to Tim Cook stepping down as Apple CEO
According to a Reuters report, the announcement came as a surprise to Wall Street, as Cook has been closely associated with Apple’s steady growth over the years. While the stock saw a small dip, the long-term impact of the leadership change remains to be seen, the report added.As announced by Apple, Cook will continue to work with the Cupertino-based company in his new role as executive chairman after stepping down as CEO.
What Apple said of Tim Cook
In a press release, Apple said:“Under Cook’s leadership Apple has grown from a market capitalization of approximately $350 billion to $4 trillion, representing a more than 1,000% increase, and yearly revenue has nearly quadrupled, from $108 billion in fiscal year 2011 to more than $416 billion in fiscal year 2025. … Apple operates over 500 retail stores and has more than doubled the number of countries in which its customers can visit an Apple Store. During his tenure, Apple has grown by more than 100,000 team members and increased its active installed base to more than 2.5 billion devices.”“Apple Services has been a major focus area of Cook’s, and during his tenure the category has grown to become a more than $100 billion business, the equivalent of a Fortune 40 company. Cook was also instrumental in creating the wearables category at Apple, which now includes the world’s most popular watch and headphones, and which has served as the foundation for Apple’s remarkable impact on the health and safety of its users. Under Cook’s leadership, Apple also transitioned to Apple-designed silicon, enabling the company to own more of its primary technology and deliver industry-leading gains in power efficiency and performance that directly benefit users across its products”.
John Ternus named new Apple CEO
Apple said that John Ternus, senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, will become Apple’s next chief executive officer effective on September 1, 2026. Ternus has worked with Apple for 25 years. He joined Apple’s product design team in 2001 and became a vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2013. He joined the executive team in 2021 as senior vice president of Hardware Engineering. Throughout his tenure at Apple, Ternus has overseen hardware engineering work on a variety of groundbreaking products across every category. He was instrumental in the introduction of multiple new product lines, including iPad and AirPods, as well as many generations of products across iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch.
