9to5Mac

Latest

Tim Cook tells employees why he chose to step down now, what’s next for him

Apple’s Tim Cook and John Ternus held an all-hands meeting with employees today in Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park, according to Bloomberg. The meeting comes one day after the announcement that Ternus will take over as Apple CEO later this year.

During the meeting, Cook offered more insight into why he decided to begin the transition now — and what his plans are for his role as Apple’s executive chairman.

Expand Expanding Close

The best (and worst) Apple products under Tim Cook [Video]

People love to compare Tim Cook’s tenure to that of Steve Jobs’. They say that Apple hasn’t been able to innovate under Tim Cook and that he never had his iPhone-level moment. In Cook’s defense, no other company or CEO has had an iPhone-level moment since that 2007 announcement. But just because he never had his iPhone moment doesn’t mean nothing happened. Under Tim Cook, Apple didn’t just coast. It built on what Steve Jobs created, and instead of chasing one massive breakthrough, Apple built multiple billion-dollar businesses, expanded into new categories, and turned its ecosystem into one of the most powerful in tech. Think about it, AirPods, Apple Watch, the transition from Intel to Apple silicon, all market disruptors that happened under Tim Cook. So let’s take a look back and see everything from the Tim Cook era.

Expand Expanding Close

9to5Mac Daily: April 21, 2026 – Tim Cook stepping down, John Ternus named CEO

9to5mac daily podcast

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts appStitcherTuneInGoogle Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by CardPointers: The best way to maximize your credit card rewards. 9to5Mac Daily listeners can exclusively save 30% and get a $100 Savings Card.

Expand Expanding Close

Reflecting on when Steve Jobs passed the Apple CEO torch to Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook is giving up the title and passing the torch to John Ternus on September 1.

Unsurprisingly, Cook is taking on the role of board executive chairman, a position in which Cook is expected to remain very active as Apple’s chief global diplomat. Retiring as CEO? Yes. But retiring into the sunset? Hardly. You can take Tim at his word when he says he can’t imagine life without Apple.

As Apple’s CEO transition shifts into the public-facing phase, I couldn’t help but revisit some of the official press material from the previous changing of the guard.

That happened under very different circumstances, of course, with Steve Jobs at the end of his life. It’s incredibly touching to revisit now. There are also echoes of Steve’s endorsement of Tim Cook in Tim’s endorsement of the next Apple CEO, John Ternus.

Expand Expanding Close

Deals: 1TB M5 MacBook Air, 2TB M5 Pro MacBook Pro new low, Apple black USB cables, chargers, more

Today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is headlined by all 4 colors of Apple’s most affordable new 1TB M5 MacBook Air back at $150 off today alongside the new 2TB M5 Pro MacBook Pro hitting its best Amazon price ever at over $160 off and the ongoing all-time low on the entry 2026 16-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro. You can score some of Apple’s elusive black USB-C cables from $7, the Twelve South PowerBug wall charger with Qi2 MagSafe has dropped even lower to a new $35 Amazon all-time low, and AirPods Pro 3 are still on sale at the $200 holiday pricing. Head below for a closer look at the details.

Expand Expanding Close

Who is John Ternus? Everything you need to know about Apple’s next CEO

Apple announced Monday that Tim Cook will step down as CEO later this year, with John Ternus set to take over on September 1. Ternus has been at Apple for over 25 years and has played a pivotal role in every Apple product category since joining.

Here’s everything you need to know about Apple’s next CEO, widely described as a “super nice guy” with an engineering and product background.

Expand Expanding Close