What can we expect from Apple’s next boss? |
What can we expect from Apple’s next boss?
April 21, 2026 — 5:11pm
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In his 15 years leading Apple, Tim Cook has achieved what many thought was impossible. But when he leaves the top job this year, his hand-picked replacement will face an unprecedented challenge – leading a giant of classical computing into an uncertain AI era.
How will John Ternus, a quiet hardware engineer known for meticulous and careful attention to detail, shape the massive company over the next decade as it adapts – or doesn’t – to an upheaval that some believe requires a full reset of how we understand computing?
At 50, Ternus has spent half his life working at Apple. Joining the company as part of the design team in 2001, he was appointed vice president of hardware engineering in 2013, overseeing Mac, AirPods and iPad. In 2021, he replaced his mentor, Dan Riccio, as senior vice president of hardware engineering, by which time he was also in charge of iPhone and Apple Watch.
Ternus is deeply involved in the technical nitty-gritty of the company’s products. Any time I’ve been to Apple Park over the past four years, he’s been the executive in the background briefings answering my questions about the new gadgets and features. In contrast to some of the cliches about Apple formed in the 2010s, he is quick to emphasise that sleek design shouldn’t come at the expense of performance and longevity, and on AI he’s spoken about........