John Ternus becomes Apple CEO, faces management overhaul

Apple named John Ternus as its next CEO on April 20, with the 25-year company veteran set to officially take charge on September 1. He succeeds Tim Cook, who will slide into the role of executive chairman of the board, capping a 15-year run that added roughly $3.6 trillion to Apple’s market value. A hardware guy takes the wheel Ternus joined Apple back in 2001, fresh from a mechanical engineering degree at the University of Pennsylvania. He climbed to vice president of hardware engineering in 2013 and was promoted to senior vice president in 2021, overseeing the iPhone, iPad, and Mac product lines along the way. His appointment came from a long-term succession plan that Apple’s board unanimously approved. Cook will remain in his CEO seat through the summer to ensure a smooth handoff. Where Cook was known for a consensus-driven management style, Ternus is reportedly bringing a more assertive approach. Redesigning the design team Reports from mid-2026 indicate Ternus has already begun restructuring Apple’s design team, which had reportedly lost influence within the company in recent years. After Jony Ive’s departure in 2019, engineers gained more leverage, and the design team’s once-...