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Apple on Monday named John Ternus as its new chief executive officer, effective Sept. 1, and said that Tim Cook would take the role of executive chairman.
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The transition will end Cook’s 15-year run as one of the most successful technology CEOs in modern history.
“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 said in a news release.
“I love Apple with all of my being, and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with a team of such ingenious, innovative, creative, and deeply caring people who have been unwavering in their dedication to enriching the lives of our customers and creating the best products and services in the world,” Cook said.
“I am profoundly grateful for this opportunity to carry Apple’s mission forward,” incoming CEO Ternus said.
About 15 years Cook’s junior, Ternus has worked on Apple’s design team since 2001, and the company said he was “instrumental” to product lines such as the iPhone and AirPods.
“Cook will continue in his role as CEO through the summer as he works closely with Ternus on a smooth transition,” Apple said.
Under Cook’s stewardship, Apple shares appreciated more than 1,700%. Apple’s market value is currently more than $4 trillion, making it the third most valuable public company in the world, behind only Nvidia and Google owner Alphabet.
Apple shares fell less than 1% in after-hours trading on Monday.
The CEO transition is the first since Apple named Tim Cook as Steve Jobs’ replacement for the top job in 2011. Before becoming Apple’s chief executive, Cook served as Jobs’ right-hand man and was the architect of Apple’s global supply chain.
Taking over from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, Cook struck a lower profile than his larger-than-life predecessor but continued to build the company’s core businesses as it also expanded into other areas.
The hardware giant in recent years expanded into services for everything from cloud storage to streaming entertainment.
During Cook’s tenure, Apple launched multiple successful updates to the iPhone, Mac, Apple TV and other critical products. But in recent years, Apple has struggled with the adoption of artificial intelligence.
At the end of 2025, its artificial intelligence chief left the company. Apple has also delayed the rollout of a more intelligent AI-powered Siri multiple times.
Instead of developing its own in house AI models, Apple recently turned to Google‘s Gemini to power Apple’s models. Apple also said that Google’s artificial intelligence would “help power future Apple Intelligence features.”
Apple has also struggled to gain widespread adoption of its virtual reality VisionPro headset, released in 2024.
However, when it came to other challenges such as dealing with the Trump administration and tariffs, Tim Cook successfully dodged many of the high duties while fostering a relationship with Trump personally.
Part of that has involved moving some small parts of Apple’s production lines to the U.S., including a Mac Pro assembly line in Houston. Cook also announced during an Oval Office visit in August that Apple would make all of the glass it requires for the iPhone and Apple Watch in Kentucky.
As part of that visit, Cook presented Trump with a 24 carat gold statue that bore the Apple logo and Cook’s signature.
Apple implied that the 65 year-old Cook would continue serving as the company’s de-facto ambassador to politicians in his new role. “As executive chairman, Cook will assist with certain aspects of the company, including engaging with policymakers around the world.”
More recently, Apple has faced questions about how it will deal with an expanding memory crisis, which is sharply driving up the price of memory components in the face of insatiable demand from AI data centers. Apple has so far resisted raising prices on its products.
But even Apple’s missteps under Cook, which would be sizable for most companies, have barely affected the company’s balance sheet and record earnings.
Steve Kopack is a senior reporter at NBC News covering business and the economy.
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
