Tim Cook is stepping down as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Apple, ending a nearly 15-year tenure that began after Steve Jobs’ death.

The company announced on Monday that Cook, 65, will hand over CEO responsibilities to Apple’s head of hardware engineering, John Ternus, on September 1. 

Cook will continue to remain with the Cupertino-based company as Executive Chairman.

The transition follows a similar path taken by Jeff Bezos at Amazon and Reed Hastings at Netflix after they stepped down from their CEO roles.

Cook became Apple CEO in 2011 and led the company during a period in which its market value increased by more than $3.6 trillion, driven largely by the continued success of the iPhone and expansion into new products and services.

“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 letter posted on the company’s website.

He joined Apple in 1998 and later oversaw the launch of many products including Apple Watch, AirPods and Apple Vision Pro, along with services such as iCloud, Apple Pay, Apple TV and Apple Music.

Under his leadership, Apple’s market capitalisation grew from nearly $350 billion to $4 trillion, while annual revenue increased from $108 billion in fiscal year 2011 to more than $416 billion in fiscal year 2025.

Ternus, 50, became senior vice president of hardware engineering in 2021 and has worked on several major product lines, including iPad, AirPods, iPhone, Mac and Apple Watch.


“John Ternus has the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator, and the heart to lead with integrity and with honor. He is a visionary whose contributions to Apple over 25 years are already too numerous to count, and he is without question the right person to lead Apple into the future,” Cook said in a statement.

As executive chairman, Cook will remain involved in parts of the company’s operations, including engagement with policymakers around the world.