Apple just made its biggest announcement in years and it has nothing to do with a product. On April 20, 2026, the company confirmed that Tim Cook is stepping down as CEO, and that John Ternus will take the top job effective September 1, 2026. Cook will move into the role of executive chairman, where he’ll continue to engage with policymakers and assist with select aspects of the company. But the day-to-day running of one of the most valuable companies on earth will pass to a man most people outside the tech world have never heard of.Ternus has spent 25 years at Apple, focused almost entirely on product development. He joined Apple in 2001 and has served as head of hardware engineering since 2021. Before taking on his current role, Ternus distinguished himself by overseeing the expansion of the iPad line, shepherding development of AirPods. His team was also essential in developing the MacBook Neo and the iPhone 17 lineup, and he played a central role in bringing the Apple Vision Pro to life.Cook will work closely with Ternus through the summer to ensure a smooth handover. Ternus will become Apple’s eighth CEO, following a line that includes Jobs and Cook. Both left enormous legacies. But neither of them was handed a company carrying a $4 trillion valuation and an AI credibility gap at the same time. Ternus is walking into both.
John Ternus education
As per reports, Ternus has as a Bachelor of Science in Engineering with a major in mechanical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. From 1997 to 2001 he worked as an engineer at Virtual Research Inc.
About Tim Cook, the outgoing CEO
When Steve Jobs died in October 2011, just weeks after handing Tim Cook the CEO title, the prevailing sentiment in Silicon Valley was essentially: good luck. He wasn’t a visionary. He wasn’t a showman. He was a supply chain guy from Alabama who’d spent his career making sure the right parts showed up in the right factories at the right time.And then he quietly built one of the most successful runs in corporate history.Apple’s market value grew from around $350 billion when Cook took over to roughly $4 trillion by the time he stepped down.
