John Ternus, a 50-year-old mechanical engineer who spent 24 years at Apple, will become CEO on 1 September. He oversaw the Apple Silicon transition, championed iPadOS, reversed a period of declining product quality, and now controls hardware responsible for ~80% of Apple's revenue. His biggest challenge is AI: Apple Intelligence has had a rocky start with delayed Siri features and regulatory issues in China, and Apple trails competitors. Ternus frames AI as 'a marathon, not a sprint,' betting on on-device processing and privacy as long-term differentiators. Critics note he has never launched a genuinely new product category and may be too incrementalist for a moment requiring bold AI strategy. Tim Cook stays on as executive chairman to handle regulatory and political relationships.
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