John Ternus officially became chief executive of Apple on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, succeeding Tim Cook after a 15-year run of iterating Steve Jobs-era products that turned the company into one of the world’s most valuable businesses.
Ternus, previously senior vice president of hardware engineering, takes over a company with a market capitalization around $4.6 trillion. Apple shares, which closed Monday at $316.85, traded higher during Tuesday’s session, showing gains of roughly 2.5% (+$8.00, +2.52% as of 10:59:06 AM EDT) as investors digested the handoff and looked ahead to the fall product cycle.
The transition was announced in April and approved unanimously by the board. Cook becomes executive chairman and will remain involved, particularly on government relations and Apple’s ties with the United States and China. Ternus also joins the board.
Ternus, 51, joined Apple’s product design team in 2001 after studying mechanical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and a brief stint designing virtual-reality hardware. He rose through hardware engineering, becoming a vice president in 2013 and SVP in 2021. He oversaw work on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, AirPods, and Vision Pro, and played a central role in Apple’s shift to its own silicon.
Cook praised him as having “the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator, and the heart to lead with integrity and with honor.” Ternus has said he wants to restore some of the product “magic” associated with Steve Jobs while pushing Apple further into artificial intelligence.
Apple is expected to show its first foldable iPhone and other devices at its September event, along with updates to Siri and other AI features that have lagged rivals. Analysts say hardware innovation and a clearer AI strategy will define his early tenure.
Markets had months to price in the change. The stock has risen about 37% since Cook announced he’d step down and sits not far from its summer highs. Whether Tuesday’s bounce holds will depend less on the title change itself than on what Ternus delivers in the coming product cycle and in Apple’s long-awaited AI response.
MacDailyNews Take: Today is a very happy day for Apple, full of promise!
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