Tim Cook’s long run at the top of Apple is reportedly coming to an end this September, and the person taking over is not from services, retail or marketing — it is John Ternus, Apple’s current senior vice president of hardware engineering.
That detail matters. A lot.
According to Engadget, Ternus will become Apple’s next CEO when Cook steps down later this year. Cook is not leaving the company entirely, though. He is expected to move into the role of executive chairman of Apple’s Board of Directors, keeping him close to the company’s direction even after handing over the CEO seat.
Cook described leading Apple as the greatest privilege of his life, after steering the company through one of the most commercially successful periods in tech history. He took over after Steve Jobs and helped turn Apple from an iPhone-and-iPad giant into something much broader: wearables, services, entertainment, and now spatial computing.
Under Cook, Apple launched products like AirPods, Apple Watch and Vision Pro. Just as importantly, Apple also became a subscription machine, with services such as Apple TV, Apple Music and other paid platforms becoming a major part of the business.
For Malaysian and SEA users, this leadership shift is worth watching because Apple’s next era may be more hardware-driven again. Ternus is not a random boardroom name. He joined Apple in 2001, became VP of hardware engineering in 2013, and moved into a senior executive role in 2021. If you follow Apple events, you may have noticed him getting more screen time recently, including during the MacBook Neo launch a few months ago.
That usually does not happen by accident.
A hardware-first CEO could mean Apple places even more emphasis on devices: iPhone design, MacBook performance, wearables, Vision Pro-style products, and whatever comes next after the current mobile era. For Malaysia, where Apple products already sit in that premium “save first, buy later” category, the big question is whether future devices become more compelling — or just more expensive.
No RM pricing changes are mentioned in the report, so don’t expect anything immediate at Machines, Switch or the Apple Store online just because the CEO is changing. But leadership affects product priorities. If Ternus pushes harder on hardware, we could see bolder Mac upgrades, more aggressive silicon moves, better battery life, new display tech, or deeper integration between iPhone, Mac, Watch and Vision Pro.
That would matter to local creators, students, esports teams, streamers and mobile-first professionals across SEA. Apple gear is already popular among video editors, designers and content creators here, especially with MacBooks becoming strong portable production machines. If the next CEO’s background is engineering rather than operations or services, the hope is that Apple gets a bit more exciting on the device side again.
Still, Cook’s Apple will be a hard act to follow. His era made Apple bigger, richer and more stable than ever. But some fans also feel the company became more cautious: polished, profitable, but not always shocking. Ternus stepping in could be Apple’s chance to show whether its next chapter has real hardware firepower — or whether it will continue playing safe.
For now, the key takeaway is simple: Tim Cook is preparing to step aside as CEO, John Ternus is set to become the new face of Apple, and the company’s future may lean even harder into the devices that made people fall in love with Apple in the first place.
Source: Engadget