Meet John Ternus: The Engineer who replaces Tim Cook as Apple Head
In a statement released for general public, Apple said Tim Cook will step down and John Ternus will replace him as Apple CEO from September 01, 2026.
[John Ternus and Tim Cook (File image)]
Tech giant Apple Monday (April 20, 2026) announced that Tim Cook is stepping down as the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Tim Cook took over the leadership of the firm since 2011 after Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs resigned for health reasons, shortly before his death.
In a statement released for general public, Apple said Tim Cook will step down and John Ternus will replace his as Apple CEO from September 01, 2026.
The iPhone maker further said Tim Cook, Apple CEO for the last 15 years, will serve the company as Chief Executive.
"It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be the CEO of Apple and to have been trusted to lead such an extraordinary company," Cook, who joined Apple in 1998, said in the statement.
Apple said Cook will stay as Chief Executive through the summer to work with Ternus on the transition after which he will "assist with certain aspects of the company, including engaging with policymakers around the world", according to BBC.
Who is John Ternus, Apple's new CEO?
Ternus, currently the Head of Hardware Engineering has been at Apple for 25 years. Ternus joined Apple's product design team in 2001 and became a senior vice president of hardware engineering over the course of the following two decades.
Ternus is credited by Apple with playing important role in an array of products including iPhones, iPads, Apple Watch, and Mac computers. Under his leadership, Apple has also made strides in hardware design, including developments in the Mac lineup and newer iPhone generations.
50-year-old Ternus, the youngest member of the executive team at the company, looks after Apple's hardware vision, which is one of the tech giant's core businesses, and is “highly regarded” by both Cook and former Apple Chief Operating Officer (COO) Jeff Williams.
"I am profoundly grateful for this opportunity to carry Apple's mission forward," Ternus, a Mechanical Engineer from University of Pennsylvania, said in the statement released to announce the Apple leadership change.
"Having spent almost my entire career at Apple, I have been lucky to have worked under Steve Jobs and to have had Tim Cook as my mentor", the new Aplple CEO, who was a also competitive swimmer during his college days, added.
Tim Cook, while praising the new Apple CEO, said, "John Ternus has the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator, and the heart to lead with integrity and with honor. He is a visionary whose contributions to Apple over 25 years are already too numerous to count, and he is without question the right person to lead Apple into the future."
"I could not be more confident in his abilities and his character, and I look forward to working closely with him on this transition and in my new role as executive chairman", he added.
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