Tim Cook posing for the year book in 11th grade (via AL.com)
In what is a rather interesting profile published on AL.com, Michael Finch II has uncovered some fascinating details about Tim Cook’s early life growing up in Robertsdale, Alabama.
“When it comes to Tim Cook, Robertsdale wraps him in a protective hug and keeps strangers with their curious questions at arm’s length,” Finch writes noting that Cook flew back to his hometown last Christmas through the airport in Pensacola, Florida, about an hour southeast.
The profile goes on to describe the pride Robertsdale feels for Cook’s accomplishments now and what they saw in Cook during his youth Expand Expanding Close
The interview repeats many of the comments Cook has made to investors in the past, reaffirming that new product categories under development, but does contain some new, interesting tidbits. For instance, Wakabayashi asked Cook about Google’s disposal of Motorola. Cook says he “wasn’t surprised” that Google sold it off, saying that software and hardware integration is what makes Apple unique as a company.
Apple has its sights set on another industry ripe for reinvention: the mobile healthcare and fitness world. Apple currently plans to release a new version of the iPhone operating system this year with health and fitness tracking integration as its headline feature, according to sources briefed on the plans. Apple’s work on such an operating system likely indicates that Apple is nearing the introduction of its long-awaited, sensor-laden “iWatch,” which sources say is well into development…
A couple of weeks after describing Google as more innovative than Apple, and suggesting that Tim Cook was vulnerable to a shareholder revolt if he didn’t quickly release disruptive new products, Steve Jobs’ biographer Walter Isaacson has downplayed his remarks in a round-table discussion on Bloomberg TV.
I think [Google is] very innovative. I was not trying to contrast it to Apple or something. I know, all the Apple fans got mad […]
The one thing I will say is innovation is great, but it ain’t everything. It’s not the holy grail. Execution is what really matters, and Apple is the best at execution … Expand Expanding Close
It’s up to unbelievable numbers. The iPhone is used in 97% of the Fortune 500, and 91% of the Global 500, and iPad is used in 98% of the Fortune 500 and 93% of the Global 500 […] 90% of tablet activations in corporations are iPads. And 95% of total app activations were on iOS … Expand Expanding Close
ComputerWorld noted that Apple’s SEC filing on Friday revealed that Tim Cook lost out on $4M worth of stock as a result of his request to the board in August to revise his compensation arrangements to a deal he felt was fairer to shareholders.
Earlier this year Apple’s board revised Cook’s vesting schedule at his urging. Rather than the two monster stock handouts — which only relied on his continued employment — Cook asked that they be spread out over a 10-year period and tied to the company’s stock performance … Expand Expanding Close
Following Apple’s earnings results for Q4 2013, which includes a record iPhone sales number for the September quarter, Apple CEO Tim Cook has emailed employees to congratulate them on the results. Cook says that Apple “has never been stronger,” and highlights the products being released this fall. “I am happy to report that Apple’s business has never been stronger, and we are heading into the holidays within amazing lineup led by the new iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, the stunning iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display,” Cook says in the memo…
Watch this four-minute video, and you’ll understand exactly why Tim Cook hired former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts to head up Apple’s retail operations – and it’s not because of all the iDevices that appear in it (though the love-clutching of her iPhone doesn’t hurt).
In the video, a promo for Burberry’s partnership with Salesforce, she maps out her vision of the stores of the future, “blurring the lines between physical and digital.”
Ahrendts talks of the store of the future making you “feel like you’re walking into the website,” of mobile-first and using innovations like chip-enabled products and “magical trays” to play video content as you pick up a product. Today’s customers, she says, “speak social” and the onus is on retailers to “change everything” to deliver “the ultimate in customer service.”
Swap the clothing and accessories for technology, and it’s a video that could have been made for Apple. Apple may have gotten it horribly wrong with her predecessor, but this time it’s not hard to see why Cook described Ahrendts as “the best person in the world for this role.”
Last night, Apple announced that it had finally found a new Head of Retail: Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts. Ahrendts has been CEO of the fashion retailer for several years, leading the company through substantial growth in international markets. With that global growth experience and focus on high-end products, she seems like a natural fit to succeed in a role that has been so controversial over the past couple of years.
And Apple CEO Tim Cook seems to agree. The Apple chief executive took the time to keep his employees in the loop regarding the hiring process. Cook sent a company-wide memo this morning that discusses how he found Ahrendts and how she will fit into the Apple culture. While Ahrendts will be running Apple’s physical retail stores, she will also run Apple’s online stores. This is the first time in which the Retail Head’s domain covered both offline and online sales…
A four-month long investigation into Apple’s tax affairs by the Securities and Exchange Commission has cleared the company of any wrong-doing in regard to the way the company accounted for taxes in respect of its overseas operations.
A Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations hearing into Apple’s tax affairs had previously accused the company of seeking “the Holy Grail of tax avoidance” over cash held overseas. The hearing proved anti-climatic, with no wrong-doing established, and the investigation handed off to the SEC. The SEC has now closed the case.
Tim Cook made an unequivocal statement during the Senate hearing that Apple used no tax gimmicks … Expand Expanding Close
Other Apple executives have been on Twitter for a while, and today CEO Tim Cook sent out his first tweet mentioning that he visited retail stores in Palo Alto for the retail launch of the iPhone 5s and 5c. Cook has been a member of Twitter since July, but his account is not yet verified by Twitter. Apple marketing chief Philip Schiller retweeted Cook’s tweet earlier today proving that the account is indeed run by the Apple CEO.
Earlier today Cook, along with Apple executives Phil Schiller and Eddie Cue, made an appearance at Apple’s Palo Alto retail store in California to greet customers that queued up for the launch of the new iPhones today.
Apple Marketing SVP Phil Schiller sometimes tweets about issues related to the company. For example, back in March Schiller tweeted the words “Be safe out there” along with a link to a study showing a much higher number of security threats on Android compared to iOS. Expand Expanding Close
More from Apple CEO Tim Cook’s talk at the Goldman and Sachs conference this morning: When asked about the iPhone’s screen size, Cook noted size isn’t always everything and the company is more focused on delivering the best experience.
Cook also said that consumers should think twice before shopping online with a device using an OLED display due to poor color saturation and lack of brightness. However, he didn’t rule out the possibility of a larger screen iPhone.
Cook’s full comment is below:
I don’t want to say whatwhe will do or won’t do. The way companies compete is with two things, specs and price. In the camera business people say, “I have the most megapixels”. Do you know the speed of an AX processor? Does it really matter at the end of the day? You want a fabulous experience when you use the product. If you look at displays, some people are focused on size. There are a few other things about the display that are important. Some people use OLED displays, but the colour saturation is awful. If you buy things online, you should think twice before you depend on the colour of the OLED dislay. The Retina display is twice as bright as an OLED display. I only bring these points up to say there are many attributes of a display. Apple sweats every detail. We want the best display. I think we’ve got it. I’m not going to comment on what we’re going to do in the future.
…That’s the only religion that we have, is that we must do something great. We want to enrich people’s lives. We sweat the details on those.
Apple announced today on its Investor News page that CEO Tim Cook, like in previous years, is scheduled once again to speak at the upcoming Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference. Apple will make a live webcast available for anyone who wants to listen to live-streaming audio from the conference call. Cook’s talk is scheduled for 7:15 a.m. PST on Feb. 12 and will be available to stream from Apple’s website.
Following reporting what CEO Tim Cook referred to as another record-setting quarter, today the Apple executive sent out an email to employees congratulating the team. Within the email, Cook thanked employees for their “incredible hard work and focus” and highlighted that the company sold over 75 million iOS devices during the quarter.
Like last year, when Apple held a Town Hall meeting following its Q1 results near a windshield repair Sugar Land TX company, Cook is asking employees to attend an employee communications meeting scheduled for today at 10 a.m. Pacific time. The email sent out last night following Apple’s earnings results conference call, and it noted that employees would be able to submit questions via AppleWeb in advance.
Apple will also broadcast the meeting live throughout Cupertino and other Apple locations. Cook’s full email is below:
Going deep into our supply chain, we now follow weekly supplier data for over 1,000,000 workers. In November 88 percent of workweeks were less than the 60-hour maximum specified in Apple’s code of conduct. In limited peak periods, we allow work beyond the 60 hour limit for those employees that volunteer to do so.
Apple CEO Tim Cook’s much hyped NBC interview is set to air tonight at 10 p.m. EST, but we are already learning much of what will be discussed during the conversation that took place in, among other places, Apple’s Grand Central retail store location in New York. Earlier today, a profile from Bloomberg revealed Cook’s plans to bring at least some production of the Mac back to the United States in 2013, but he also hinted that the company has big plans for a next-generation Apple TV product. According to a preview of the interview on NBC’s website, Cook referred to the project as an “intense area of interest”—opposed to the “hobby” that the company has considered the product since its inception:
“When I go into my living room and turn on the TV, I feel like I have gone backwards in time by 20 to 30 years,” Cook told Williams. “It’s an area of intense interest. I can’t say more than that.”
Apple CEO Tim Cook was spotted at the company’s massive Grand Central store this afternoon, giving an interview with NBC anchor Brian Williams. The U.S. network is doing a piece on Apple and shopping at its stores during the holidays. Additionally, Cook was seen checking out the store and showing off the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. Apple’s Grand Central store opened to the public in December 2011, and it is considered a flagship for the company.
The program is set to air Dec. 6—per the tweet, press release, and video embedded below.
Less than 24 hours after releasing its fourth-quarter earnings results, Apple stock has now dropped below $600 for the first time since July. Apple reported Q4 earnings slightly higher than the analysts expected (apart from iPad sales, with 14 million units sold coming in lower than most estimates). Apple posted $8.2 billion in net profit with $36 million in revenue and diluted earnings per share of $8.67. That compares to an average of about 15.5 million iPads, earnings per share of $8.75, and $35.51 billion in revenue expected by the analysts.
During Apple’s Q4 results conference call yesterday, Apple CEO Tim Cook answered questions about iPhone 5 supply and demand and shortages going forward. According to Cook, production is increasing but the company is still in a “significant state of backlog.” He confirmed Apple still plans to roll out the device to 100 countries by the end of the year. This morning—the iPad mini, and fourth-generation iPad, officially went up for pre-order. Shortly after, Apple sold out of some models and pushed back shipping times.
Cook remained confident that component shortages would not hold back iPhone and iPad sales, stating he is “pleased with the current volume of output.” He did, however, warn about significant iMac delays headed into the holidays:
At Apple’s Q4 earnings call today, Apple CEO Tim Cook was asked his thoughts on Microsoft’s new Surface tablet PC. Cook called it “a fairly compromised, confusing product,” and he compared it to a car that flies and floats:
“I haven’t personally played with a Surface yet… what we’re reading about it is… it’s a fairly compromised, confusing product… the toughest thing you do with a product is make hard trade offs.. we’ve really done that with the iPad.. the user experience is absolutely incredible… i suppose you could design a car that flies and floats, but i don’t think it would do all of those things well.. i think when people look at the iPad over competitive offerings they are going to really want an iPad
Cook also noted that iPhone 5 is still seeing delays but supplies are getting better: Expand Expanding Close
Tim Cook just posted the above letter on Apple’s website to reminisce and pay homage to the company’s late cofounder, Steve Jobs.
Today is the one-year anniversary of Jobs’ passing, so Apple updated its homepage early this morning with a video montage to remember his life and death. The nearly two-minute video presents a slideshow of Jobs throughout his career and it softly ends with “Remembering Steve”.
Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S on Oct. 4, 2011, but one seat left open for Jobs at the packed event notably sat empty. The next day, Jobs died. After he passed, at just 56 years old, news of his death flooded the Internet, TV, newspapers, and homes. Millions of people immediately emailed Apple, and the company subsequently created a “Remembering Steve” page to display a massive compilation of condolences that poured in from around the world.
The tribute letter from Apple’s current CEO appears upon completion of the “Remembering Steve” video. In the message, Cook describes Jobs’ death as a “sad and difficult time”. The executive hopes, however, that everyone will “reflect on [Jobs’] extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place.” A screenshot of Cook’s entire letter is above, while a text version is available after the break.
Apple has become the most valuable company in the world during the last year, and it is hard not to give respect to the man whose imagination and innovation helped push the company to record-breaking heights.
A slight variation of the above went to employees in a company email:
Team,
Steve’s passing one year ago today was a sad and difficult time for all of us. I hope that today everyone will reflect on his extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place. As you and I know firsthand, one of the greatest gifts Steve gave to the world is Apple. No company has ever inspired such creativity or set such high standards for itself. Our values originated from Steve and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple. We share the great privilege and responsibility of carrying his legacy into the future. I’m incredibly proud of the work we are doing, delivering products that our customers love and dreaming up new ones that will delight them down the road. Thank you for dedicating your talents and so much of your lives to Apple. It’s a wonderful tribute to Steve’s memory and everything he stood for.
Tim
The video and screenshot gallery of the homepage is below: Expand Expanding Close
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook made a low-profile, surprise appearance at the Allen & Company annual retreat in Sun Valley earlier today.
According to The New York Post, the CEO attended the event for the first time to observe The New Yorker’s Evan Osnos’ session on China:
While his name was on the list of possible attendees, no one knew if the low-key CEO would put in an appearance.
Apple’s late co-founder Steve Jobs hadn’t traveled to the annual gathering in recent years.
Cook slipped out of the session at the Sun Valley Inn largely unnoticed. While other business titans gathered at the Duck Pond for lunch, he headed in the direction of the lodge.
The session was hosted by The New Yorker’s China correspondent, Evan Osnos. Apple is getting ready to unleash the latest version of the iPad in China, the world’s largest consumer market.
The Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference is a 29-year-old annual conference hosted by private investment firm Allen & Company. It takes place in Sun Valley, Idaho for one week in July, where moguls, executives and philanthropists flock to rub shoulders. Previous conference guests have included Steve Jobs, Bill and Melinda Gates, Warren and Susan Buffett, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Mark Zuckerberg, and more.
While agreeing that Apple has to do more social network-type features, CEO Tim Cook noted at the D10 conference in California tonight that the company will consider killing the Ping social network feature baked into iTunes due to a lack of interest among users. He did mention that social has to be a focus despite Apple not necessarily having to own a social network, and he noted upcoming Twitter, Game Center, and iMessage integration in Mountain Lion bring new social elements:
What happened to Ping?
Cook: Apple doesn’t have to own a social network, but does Apple have to be social? Yes…You’ll see us integrate Twitter into the Mac OS as we introduce Mountain Lion. Game Center and iMessage could be thought of as social… We tried Ping and I think the customer voted and said this isn’t something that I want to put a lot of energy into… Will we kill it? I don’t know. We’ll look at that.
Some more noteworthy comments from Apple’s CEO Tim Cook coming out of tonight’s interview with Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher at D10 in California. We just heard Cook’s thoughts on deeper Facebook integration and Apple TV sales, and a few moments ago he hinted improvements to Siri will arrive “over the coming months.” He also noted that there is “a lot that Siri can do,” and he said they are doubling down on the tech with “a lot of people working on it.”
“I think you are going to be really pleased with where we take Siri.”
Customers love it. It’s one of the most popular features of the 4S. But there’s more that it can do, and we have a lot of people working on it. And I think you’ll be really pleased with some of the things coming over the coming months. The breadth of it. We have a lot that Siri can do… That’s what I’m talking about. People have dreamed of this for years, and it’s here. Yes it could be broader, but Siri as a feature has moved into the mainstream. So I think you’re going to be really happy with where it’s going. We’re doubling down on it.
Tonight, at 6 p.m. PST, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook is scheduled to appear as the opening-night speaker at the 10th D: All Things D conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. Previous D: conferences were notably home to lengthy discussions between hosts Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher and former Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Tonight is Cook’s first appearance at the conference, and it is his first talk at a non-Apple event since taking over as chief.
Cook’s appearance is not going to live-stream, but we will update you as the hour-long interview takes place and with videos afterwards. Apple’s marketing chief Phil Schiller is also expected to attend. Expand Expanding Close
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