- Ternus is credited with major product innovations.
- It faces the challenge of integrating AI into Apple products.
- Cook becomes CEO after overseeing historic growth.
Apple on Monday named expert John Ternus as its next CEO, picking the veteran hardware chief to lead the company after Tim Cook, as the iPhone maker prepares for an industry shift fueled by artificial intelligence.
Ternus, which joined Apple in 2001 and has been a quiet but firm presence behind the scenes in improving its products over the years, has played a key role in reviving sales of products such as Apple’s Mac computers, which have gained market share from PCs.
At 50, Ternus is the same age Cook was when he took over as CEO from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. It recently showed off the company’s iPhone Air last fall, the biggest iPhone refresh since 2017 and a key testing ground for several new chips.
Despite its low external profile, Ternus has helped create now-ubiquitous products like iPads and AirPods. He will be tasked with helping Apple navigate a technology landscape disrupted by AI, after losing its crown as the world’s most valuable company to Nvidia.
It has also helped sharpen distinctions between Apple’s product lines by introducing “Pro” Mac and iPhone models that took their technological capabilities and pricing to new heights, while introducing offerings like the MacBook Neo and iPhone “e” models at some of the lowest prices in Apple’s history.
Ternus will have to fend off Nvidia, which has announced its own personal computer and is working on chips that can power laptops, as well as rivals such as Meta Platforms, whose augmented reality glasses have become a surprise hit with just a fraction of the capabilities – and price – of Apple’s Vision Pro headset.
“Mr. Ternus’ promotion indicates that the company will focus on new hardware devices such as foldable phones, glasses, virtual reality devices and AI pins,” said Gil Luria, CEO of DA Davidson & Co.
Perhaps the biggest challenge Ternus will face is how to integrate AI into the iPhone (the most successful consumer product in history) and the rest of Apple’s lineup. Earlier this year, Apple reached a deal with its former smartphone rival, Alphabet’s Google, to use Google’s Gemini in an effort to improve its Siri virtual assistant.
Despite introducing a form of artificial intelligence to the public imagination in 2011 with Siri, Apple has yet to deliver any hardware or software products focused on new AI technologies, while emerging rivals such as OpenAI have attracted hundreds of millions of users.
“I expect their biggest challenge and efforts will be focused on getting a better AI story and a joint offering that relies more on Apple’s own capabilities and less on third parties,” said Bob O’Donnell, principal at technology consulting firm TECHAnalysis Research.
Cook oversaw historic growth
Cook will become the company’s chief executive, Apple said in a statement. Apple shares have risen twenty-fold since Cook took over as CEO in August 2011.
Cook was recruited by Jobs from Compaq at a time when that company was in the midst of the PC boom of the 1990s, and Jobs was working to rescue Apple from the brink of insolvency.
While Cook built an early reputation at Apple by developing its extensive supply chain in China, over the years he became a famous CEO in his own right. He was the first Fortune 500 CEO to come out as gay in 2014 and took public stances on issues such as workplace diversity and corporate sustainability.
Cook, who presented a personalized gold plaque to US President Donald Trump, will also continue to engage with policymakers, the company said.
By naming Ternus CEO, Apple is transitioning from a supply chain guru who helped build Apple into a global brand that produces hundreds of millions of units per year, to a leader who has long focused on design and products.
Ben Bajarin, CEO of technology consultancy Creative Strategies, said Ternus is well-liked within Apple and will bring fresh energy.”
Separately, Apple said Johny Srouji, who oversaw Apple’s custom chip and sensor designs, has been named chief hardware officer. Srouji will continue to oversee that group, along with the hardware engineering group once led by Ternus, which will now be overseen by Tom Merieb.
