Apple’s New Era Starts Now

Big news for Apple as it gracefully slides out of the Tim Cook era into the John Ternus era. Cook isn’t gone, though; he’s now Executive Chairman.

“John Ternus has the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator, and the heart to lead with integrity and with honour.” Cook said of Ternus. “He is a visionary whose contributions to Apple over 25 years are already too numerous to count, and he is without question the right person to lead Apple into the future. I could not be more confident in his abilities and his character, and I look forward to working closely with him on this transition and in my new role as executive chairman.”

Under Cook’s leadership Apple has grown from a market capitalisation of approximately US$350 billion to US$4 trillion, representing a more than 1,000% increase, and yearly revenue has nearly quadrupled, from US$108 billion in fiscal year 2011 to more than US$416 billion in fiscal year 2025. 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.

Cook, 65, assuaged any fears by assuring everyone he was happy and healthy. “I am healthy. My energy is high, and I plan to be in this new role for a long time.”
But why step down? Apparently he wanted the “best-ever transition”, which meant “business had to be doing great,” and the “product road map to be incredible” as well as Ternus being “ready for the role”. It’s hard to deny that now is the perfect time. Better than waiting for the wheels to fall off and having to do a crisis managerial handover to a CEO needing to do a slash and burn.

So who’s John Ternus? Apple is continuing its tradition of letting its talent that’s been around for decades rise to the top. Prior to Apple, Ternus worked as a mechanical engineer at Virtual Research Systems and holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. Ternus joined Apple’s product design team in 2001 and became a vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2013.

“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,” he said in their announcement.

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 products. 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.

You have Ternus to thank for the AirPods being so good. His team drove advancements in AirPods to make them the world’s best in-ear headphones. Most recently his team also refined the iPhone 17 Pro, Pro Max and the thin and durable iPhone Air.

All this was strategically timed ahead of the iPhone Duo launch, with Cook handing the keynote to Ternus to unveil it. This is the first release of a foldable iPhone, clocking in with a price tag of over $4,000. Its inner display is 7.6 inches, while the outer display, used when it’s closed, is 5.4 inches, delivering 90% of the screen area of an iPhone 18 Pro. It actually looks quite squat in comparison. I like it. It lives in a middle ground of having both a decently small screen as well as the largest an iPhone has ever had. It uses the A20 Pro chip, the same as the iPhone 18 Pro, and has a battery life of 31 hours of video playback when using the inner display, or 44 on just the outer display.
Ternus is confident saying he’s “especially excited to be stepping into this role at this moment, because I am telling you we are about to change the world once again.”
Will the Duo change the world? Well, as much as I love using them, Samsung hasn’t blown the world away with its Fold, so I don’t see the Duo doing much more.

He Came, He Saw, He Cooked

Tim Cook had the unenviable task of filling the gigantic boots left behind by Steve Jobs. He never had the once-in-a-generation aura of his predecessor, but he was a sensible steward of the company for 15 years. He’s taken the company from $11 a share in 2011 to over $315 per share today, leaving behind a company in better shape than he found it in. Not an easy feat to pull off when you’ve had a company dropped into your lap at the zenith of its social zeitgeist. That’s a legacy any CEO can be proud of.

1960 – Came to Life

1982 – Joins IBM

1994 – Leaves IBM as Director of North American Fulfilment

1994 – Becomes COO of the Computer Reseller Division at Intelligent Electronics

1997 – Briefly joins Compaq as VP of Corporate Materials

1998 – Joins Apple as Senior VP of Worldwide Operations

2002 – Promoted to Executive VP of Worldwide Sales and Operations

2009 – Becomes Apple’s COO

2011 – Becomes CEO after Jobs resigns due to ill health

2020 – Net worth exceeds $1 billion

2026 – Steps down as CEO to become Executive Chairman