Tim Cook’s Impeccable Timing

Ben Thompson analyzes Tim Cook's 15-year tenure as Apple CEO, covering his extraordinary financial achievements (revenue up 303%, market cap from $297B to $4T) and the strategic context that made his success possible. Cook benefited from inheriting the iPhone just years after its launch, then scaled it masterfully through operational excellence and supply chain dominance. Thompson examines Cook's key decisions: building deep China manufacturing dependence, growing Services revenue to 41% of profits, and maintaining the App Store's 30% cut despite developer pushback. The piece also scrutinizes Cook's unresolved challenges — particularly Apple's AI strategy, where Siri's delays led to white-labeling Google's Gemini, potentially ceding long-term AI independence. Thompson concludes Cook's timing stepping down is prudent: leaving at Apple's financial peak while handing the AI existential question to successor John Ternus.