In the latest Power On newsletter from Bloomberg News‘ Mark Gurman, the spotlight is firmly on John Ternus, who will step into the role of Apple CEO on September 1, 2026, succeeding Tim Cook. Gurman argues that Ternus’s top priority should be nothing less than a full-scale revival of Apple’s once-legendary industrial design team — a group that has “lost its way” in the years since Jony Ive’s departure.
Why Design Needs a Shake-Up
Apple built its empire on products that didn’t just work beautifully — they looked and felt revolutionary. The iPhone, MacBook, and AirPods became cultural icons because design sat at the absolute center of decision-making. But according to the report, that influence has eroded:
• Key departures have hollowed out the team: Jony Ive left in 2019, followed by other leaders like Evans Hankey and Alan Dye (who joined Meta in late 2025).
• The industrial design organization no longer holds a true executive seat and reports through operations rather than driving strategy.
• Recent products, while solid, have been criticized for incrementalism rather than the “wow” factor that once defined Apple.
Ternus, a 25-year Apple veteran with deep hardware engineering roots (he previously oversaw the transition to Apple Silicon and the iPad Pro redesign), already has visibility into design. Gurman notes that Ternus has emphasized making Apple products “the most beautifully designed items customers own.” The incoming CEO now has the chance — and the mandate — to appoint fresh leadership, restore design’s strategic clout, and refocus the company on aesthetics alongside AI and functionality.
A Jam-Packed 2027: Apple’s Make-or-Break Year
The newsletter also dives into Apple’s ambitious 2027 product plans, which could give Ternus the perfect stage to prove design still matters. This lineup coincides with the iPhone’s 20th anniversary and looks set to be one of the most exciting hardware years in recent memory:
• Camera-equipped AirPods: Slated for late 2027, these AI-focused earbuds with built-in cameras represent a major push into always-on intelligent devices.
• Next-gen Foldable iPhone: A sequel to the first foldable model (expected earlier), aiming to refine the category.
• Twentieth Anniversary iPhone: A flagship “iPhone 20” or special edition model to celebrate two decades of the revolutionary device.
• Smart Glasses: Apple’s answer to Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, potentially launching around the same timeframe.
This “flurry of new releases” signals Apple is betting big on wearables, foldables, and AI hardware — categories where standout design will be essential to stand out from competitors.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple remains financially dominant and technically strong, especially in AI with improvements to Siri and its ecosystem. But to reclaim the “cool” factor and drive the next decade of growth, design must once again become a north star. Ternus — a product person per se, unlike his predecessor — has the engineering chops and internal respect to pull this off. If he succeeds in rebuilding the design culture while executing on the 2027 roadmap, Apple could enter a new golden era!
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its not the design of apple products that the problem, its the software MACOS is buggy and frustrating as hell, whatever new leader apple has in the not so distant future has to sort that out as a top priority.
Mark Durman, the smug armchair quarterback writer, who gets info leaked to him, is a bit of overpaid, powered up twat.
W/o excellent design, might as well just “make a Dell” and make cost-cutting king.
It’s just another block in the tech-as-commodity wall.
Design (good) costs and there’s a crew that deems paying for it, unnecessary.
It’s just mind-boggling that Jeff Williams was actually in charge of design 🥴
Apple built its empire on products that didn’t just work beautifully — they looked and felt revolutionary.
But first, the products still have to work beautifully—otherwise the “design” is not good design.
I miss the old days where Apple didn’t have to leak future product information in order to reassure the market. Those AirPods Pro with cameras were claimed to be a 2026 release before, now “late 2027”. Who cares about the 2nd gen iPhone foldable (100% an incremental upgrade) when we haven’t even seen the first gen? What about that Homepod with a swiveling screen, security camera and other HomeKit devices we expected this year alongside the new Siri? Crickets…
Jobs wanted total control of the hardware & software to guarantee the best possible experience for the customer. Also, Jobs was very interested in intersecting design technology with fine arts. Well designed products weren’t just an end but a means to an end. You can’t have great products that are designed well. But a well designed product should be functionally and aesthetically beautiful. It was never about the money. It was about designing products that empowered people to unleash their productivity and creativity beyond anything they could do on their own. Remember his condor illustration and the bicycle? Jobs was creating powerful machines to help the “Crazy Ones” push the human race forward.
Actually, Jony leaving was a good thing. Remember the trash-can Mac Pro? And the Macbook Pro with four ports and no magsafe? Right now the hardware designs are fine with me; I want software that doesn’t lag so often and that will make better use of the $6k hardware I paid for.