New Delhi — Apple entered a new leadership era Tuesday as John Ternus officially became chief executive officer, succeeding Tim Cook after 15 years at the helm of the technology giant.
Ternus assumed the CEO role on September 1 and also joined Apple’s board of directors. Cook, who had led Apple since August 2011 following the departure of co-founder Steve Jobs, has moved into the newly created position of executive chairman.
In his new role, Cook is expected to focus largely on engagement with policymakers around the world while continuing to assist Apple on select strategic matters.
Ternus joined Apple’s product design team in 2001 and was promoted to senior vice president of hardware engineering in 2021. He has overseen hardware engineering across Apple’s product lineup and played a major role in the development of products including the iPad, AirPods and multiple generations of the iPhone and Mac.
His team has also overseen recent product launches, including the ultrathin iPhone Air and the MacBook Neo.
“It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be the CEO of Apple,” Cook said when the leadership transition was announced in April. He described Ternus as having “the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator and the heart to lead with integrity.”
Apple experienced dramatic growth during Cook’s tenure. The company’s market capitalization increased from about $350 billion when he became CEO to roughly $4 trillion, while annual revenue climbed from approximately $108 billion in 2011 to more than $400 billion.
Apple also expanded far beyond its traditional hardware business under Cook. Its services division, which includes the App Store, Apple Music and Apple Pay, now generates more than $100 billion in annual revenue.
Ternus takes control of Apple at a pivotal moment as the company faces increasing pressure to strengthen its position in artificial intelligence.
Among his biggest challenges will be accelerating Apple’s AI strategy while preserving the tightly integrated hardware, software and services ecosystem that has helped the company build one of the world’s largest installed bases of customers. (Source: IANS)
