John Ternus became Apple’s chief executive on 1 September 2026, succeeding Tim Cook after 15 years in the role. Cook has moved to executive chairman and remains on Apple’s board.
At 51, Ternus is Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering and has spent 25 years at the company. He joined Apple’s product design team in 2001 and was announced as Cook’s successor in April 2026.
Cook told staff that Ternus is “brilliant and wonderful and capable”. Inside Apple, Ternus is credited with pushing for products that are more durable, reliable and resilient. He is also credited with design work that cut their carbon footprint.
His first public-facing appearance as chief executive is due at Apple’s iPhone launch event on 9 September 2026. He is set to introduce the new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Ultra lineup at the company’s fall media event.
Apple is also expected to unveil its first foldable handset at the event. The company will roll out a new Siri artificial intelligence experience powered by Google’s Gemini.
The showcase gives Ternus an early test as Apple seeks to close a gap in artificial intelligence. Apple controls a fifth of the global smartphone market and closer to two-thirds of the premium device category, those that cost more than $600. Google, OpenAI and platforms other than Apple own the most popular AI assistants.
Ternus’s appointment shifts Apple’s chief executive role to an executive whose career has been in hardware engineering. It remains unclear whether he will favour more internal artificial intelligence development or continue to rely on partnerships such as the Gemini deal.
The leadership change comes alongside other recent movement at the company. Luca Maestri stepped down as Apple’s Corporate Services leader in recent weeks.
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