Apple is reportedly accelerating its succession plans as CEO Tim Cook considers stepping down as early as next year, according to a Friday report by the Financial Times. Cook has led the company since 2011, taking the helm after Steve Jobs stepped aside, marking the end of an era for the tech giant founded in a garage decades earlier.
The report suggests Apple is not expected to reveal a new CEO until after its next earnings announcement in late January, which will cover the crucial holiday quarter. Among the internal candidates discussed, John Ternus—Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering—is widely viewed as the front-runner to succeed Cook, the FT said, citing people familiar with internal conversations.
Ternus currently heads Apple’s hardware engineering organisation, overseeing development across major product lines such as the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and AirPods. Before joining Apple, he worked as a mechanical engineer at Virtual Research Systems and holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
Speculation about Cook’s retirement intensified after he turned 65 this year, though neither he nor Apple has confirmed any plans for him to leave. In fact, Cook addressed the topic last year in an interview with Wired, saying he intends to lead the company as long as he feels it is the right time to do so. He described working at Apple as a “privilege of a lifetime” and noted he would step aside only when his inner voice tells him it is time to begin a new chapter.
