Apple bets new CEO John Ternus will bring back Jobs-era decisiveness

By Mark Gurman

 

When Apple Inc. announced Monday that longtime leader Tim Cook would be replaced by John Ternus, it published an image of the two executives walking side by side at the company’s campus in Cupertino, California. 

 

Both men are wearing Apple Watches, dark button-up shirts and blue jeans as they smile at each other — a near mirror image. The implication: Ternus, Apple’s hardware head, will bring continuity as chief executive officer and help preserve Cook’s legacy. 

But Ternus will have a challenge when he officially takes the job in September. Even as he maintains Apple’s device empire — and its more than $400 billion in annual revenue — the executive will need to take chances, enter new product categories and find the company’s footing in artificial intelligence.

 

 

None of that will be easy, and the ability to “think different” will determine whether Apple can keep thriving in the AI era.

 

“He must resist the temptation of incrementalism that has plagued Apple of late,” Forrester Research Inc. analyst Dipanjan Chatterjee said in a note. “As Ternus assumes the helm, he must define Apple’s future as ferociously as he defends its past.” 

 

   Moving Faster 

  To succeed, Ternus will need to keep what works — operational discipline and calm leadership — while breaking from the consensus-driven decision-making that has defined Cook’s tenure. He will also need to move faster, sharpen Apple’s competitiveness in AI and deliver new hardware hits.

 

Cook did oversee the launch of groundbreaking products, including the Apple Watch, AirPods and Vision Pro headset, but the track record is mixed. The watch and earbuds became enormous successes, though both emerged while key members of his predecessor’s leadership and engineering teams were still at the company. 

The Vision Pro — long envisioned by Cook as a capstone product — has flopped, despite a decade of development and billions in investment. Apple also spent roughly $10 billion on an autonomous-car project that was ultimately scrapped. In both cases, Ternus’ instincts appear to have been more cautious; he opposed the initiatives to varying degrees. 

 

Where Ternus has excelled is execution. He has ensured that Apple consistently delivers updated versions of the iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch each year, while improving hardware quality, durability and performance — hallmarks of his stint as hardware chief.

 

Ternus, 50, also was a champion of the MacBook Neo, a product that broke with Apple’s typical premium-minded approach. He urged the company to sell a cheaper laptop that could appeal to a younger generation, and his instincts were rewarded. The colorful $599 machine — unveiled last month — won rave reviews and quickly sold out. 

 

This was the beginning of Ternus putting his stamp on the company, but he’ll now have to lead Apple into additional new categories. The tech giant is currently focused on two main areas of expansion: AI-powered smart home products and wearable devices.

 

The home push includes a smart display with facial recognition, a tabletop robot with a swiveling display for videoconferencing and media playback, and a privacy-focused security camera. The wearables effort spans smart glasses, a pendant device and new AirPods, all with computer-vision cameras for scanning a wearer’s surroundings.

Slow Headway 

So far, progress has been uneven. Apple had hoped to introduce smart glasses as early as this year, but the product remains months away from readiness, potentially pushing a debut into 2027. Its home devices have also been delayed as Apple struggles to get its AI models and next-generation Siri voice assistant up to par. The tabletop robot, once targeted for 2027, is now at risk of slipping into 2028.

 

Fixing Apple’s AI execution is critical. Delays are no longer just technical — they’re starting to affect the company’s ability to ship hardware that drives upgrades and revenue.  

Apple picked Ternus, in part, because of his age and belief that he could reinvent Apple’s product lineup and compete against AI-savvy competitors. He is likely to keep a sharper focus on products and rely on deputies like Chief Operating Officer Sabih Khan to help him run the business.

Decision-Making Style 

Apple also is betting that Ternus has a more decisive leadership style — something closer to that of co-founder Steve Jobs. Longtime colleagues describe Ternus as someone willing to make clear calls, in contrast to Cook’s more deliberative, consensus-oriented approach.

 

“Ternus will make decisions” when it comes to product development, said one person who has worked closely with both executives. “If you go to Tim with ‘A’ or ‘B,’ he won’t pick. He’ll ask a series of questions instead if he has concerns.”

 

Ternus, on the other hand, will choose, said the person, who asked not to be identified in order to speak candidly. “It could be right or wrong, but at least it’s a decision.”

 

That shift could mark the end of an era in which major product decisions were made collectively by a small group of top executives. Ternus is expected to take a more centralized approach where he will be a singular decision-maker. 

 

Cook, meanwhile, will stay on as executive chairman, focusing on government relations and geopolitics — including Apple’s ties to China and its relationship with US President Donald Trump. Colleagues say that while Ternus can be a smooth talker, he’s not yet ready to take the mantle from Cook as the person dealing with policymakers globally. 

 

The September transition positions Ternus to begin his tenure with momentum. He will oversee the launch of Apple’s first foldable iPhone — one of the most significant changes to the product in its history — alongside a much-needed fresh start for Siri. 

 

Earlier this month, Ternus overhauled the hardware engineering organization around what he calls a new AI platform designed to speed up product development and improve device quality. It’s indicative of his plan to deploy AI quickly throughout the company to improve its operations.

 

The executive has told staffers that he will remain closely involved with hardware engineering efforts, aiming to shepherd the next generation of technologies. 

 

That is the crux of the job ahead. Apple no longer needs another operator. It’s seeking a leader who can define what comes next.