Jeff Williams, once considered a frontrunner, is now unlikely to succeed Cook.
John Ternus is reportedly admired by Cook and Eddy Cue for his leadership potential.
Apple may undergo broader executive transitions as key figures near retirement.
Tim Cook has led Apple since 2011, introducing products such as Apple Watch, expanding into streaming, and entering the mixed reality space with Vision Pro. Cook, 63, has served longer than the average Fortune 500 CEO, and questions about his succession have already surfaced, owing to a lack of a clear and visible long-term replacement.
SurveyCook’s executive team has remained largely unchanged since the Steve Jobs era except for the departures of Jony Ive and Angela Ahrendts. While many in his inner circle are nearing retirement age, Tim Cook has already stated in a podcast that his job is to prepare several people for the ability to succeed and he really wants the person to come from within the company. However, he did not name anybody.
Jeff Williams, Chief Operating Officer, was once regarded as the likely successor. He oversaw the Apple Watch’s development and took over hardware and software design after Jony Ive left. But now that he is retiring, the question of who will be the next CEO has risen again.
READ: Apple’s design team will report directly to Tim Cook after Jeff Williams’ exit
According to Bloomberg, hardware engineering chief John Ternus, who is under 50 years old, is now considered the front-runner. He joined Apple in 2001 and gradually took on responsibilities for iPads, Macs, AirPods, iPhones, and Apple Watch hardware. He’s been a visible face at Apple product launches for a while now.
According to the report, Cook admires Ternus’ presentation skills and calm decision-making, and Eddy Cue believes he will succeed him as CEO. Critics argue that he lacks boldness and has not played key roles in recent major projects such as the Vision Pro or Apple Car. Some engineers question his long-term innovation focus and assertive leadership style.
Other contenders include Craig Federighi and Deirdre O’Brien. However, the report suggests that this is unlikely. It also implies that executives such as Dan Riccio and Phil Schiller are nearing retirement, and Apple may make some significant changes.
However, Cook has said that he plans to stay for a while and the report claims that he may remain as Apple Boss for at least three years.
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Ashish Singh
Ashish Singh is the Chief Copy Editor at Digit. He's been wrangling tech jargon since 2020 (Times Internet, Jagran English '22). When not policing commas, he's likely fueling his gadget habit with coffee, strategising his next virtual race, or plotting a road trip to test the latest in-car tech. He speaks fluent Geek. View Full Profile
