Apple Inc. has announced a significant leadership transition naming John Ternus as its next chief executive officer to succeed Tim Cook, who will move to the role of executive chairman.
Apple said on Monday 20th April, that Ternus is succeeding Cook as CEO, with Cook assuming the role of executive chairman effective September 1, 2026. Cook will continue in his role as CEO through the summer as he works closely with Ternus on a smooth transition.
The transition was approved unanimously by the Board of Directors, following what Apple described as a thoughtful, long-term succession planning process.
According to CNN, Ternus, 51, is currently Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, the role in which he led the engineering behind the company’s most recognisable products, including the iPhone, Mac, AirPods, and the Apple Vision Pro.
He joined Apple in 2001 as a member of the product design team and has been senior vice president of hardware engineering since 2021.
It is the first CEO transition at Apple since Cook, now 65, succeeded Steve Jobs in 2011, shortly before Jobs’ death. Ternus will become Apple’s eighth chief executive.
Apple’s market capitalisation increased by more than 20-fold on Cook’s watch, closing on Monday at $4 trillion.
In a statement, Cook said: “It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be the CEO of Apple and to have been trusted to lead such an extraordinary company. I love Apple with all of my being.”
And according to Apple, Ternus responded: “I am profoundly grateful for this opportunity to carry Apple’s mission forward. Having spent almost my entire career at Apple, I have been lucky to have worked under Steve Jobs and to have had Tim Cook as my mentor.”
As part of the broader leadership reshuffle, Johny Srouji will become Apple’s chief hardware officer, taking over Ternus’s former role in an expanded capacity. Ternus will also join Apple’s board of directors effective September 1.
Whereas Jobs was a product innovator and Cook a supply chain genius, Ternus is described as deeply technical, having come up through product development ranks with a reputation for drilling into engineering details and pushing past boundaries.
