Tim Cook Announces Retirement as Apple CEO; Hardware Chief John Ternus to Succeed Him September 1

Apple CEO Tim Cook announced he will step down from the company's top role, ending a nearly 15-year tenure that transformed Apple into the world's most valuable company. John Ternus, Apple's Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering — the executive credited with leading development of the Apple Silicon chip transition — will succeed Cook as CEO effective September 1, 2026. Cook will remain with the company as Executive Chairman. Under Cook's leadership, Apple's market capitalization grew from roughly $350 billion at his 2011 appointment to over $3 trillion. The announcement was made alongside Apple's Q2 2026 earnings report. Analysts noted Cook had been managing Apple through heightened US-China trade tensions, Section 232 tariffs on imported electronics components, and supply chain disruptions from the Iran war's impact on global shipping.