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Apple is stepping up its succession planning efforts, as it prepares for Tim Cook to step down as chief executive as soon as next year.
Several people familiar with discussions inside the tech group told the Financial Times that its board and senior executives have recently intensified preparations for Cook to hand over the reins at the $4tn company after more than 14 years.
John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice-president of hardware engineering, is widely seen as Cook’s most likely successor, although no final decisions have been made, these people said.
People close to Apple say the long-planned transition is not related to the company’s current performance, ahead of what is expected to be a blockbuster end-of-year sales period for the iPhone.
Apple declined to comment.
The company is unlikely to name a new CEO before its next earnings report in late January, which covers the critical holiday period.
An announcement early in the year would give its new leadership team time to settle in ahead of its big annual keynote events, its developer conference in June and its iPhone launch in September, the people said.
These people said that although preparations have intensified, the timing of any announcement could change.
Cook, Apple’s former operations chief who turned 65 this month, has led the company since 2011 when he took over the role from its co-founder Steve Jobs, who died months later. During Cook’s tenure, the Big Tech group’s market capitalisation has surged from about $350bn in 2011 to $4tn today.
Apple’s shares are trading close to an all-time high after strong results last month, although its stock-price rise of roughly 12 per cent this year lags behind its Big Tech rivals Alphabet, Nvidia and Microsoft, whose valuations have been propelled by Wall Street’s exuberance about artificial intelligence.
Apple has had a number of high-profile changes this year among its top executive team. Longtime Cook confidante, chief financial officer Luca Maestri, stepped back from his role at the start of this year. Jeff Williams, a Cook protégé, announced he was stepping down as chief operating officer in July.
Appointing Ternus would put an executive from the hardware side of the company back in charge at the iPhone maker at a time when Apple has struggled to break into new product categories and keep up with its Silicon Valley rivals in AI.
Cook has voiced his preference for an internal candidate to be chosen as his replacement, saying the company has “very detailed succession plans”.
“I love it there and I can’t envision my life without being there so I’ll be there a while,” he told singer Dua Lipa on her podcast in November 2023.