“John cares so much about who we are at Apple, what we do at Apple, who we reach at Apple, and he has the heart and character to lead with extraordinary integrity,” Cook said, describing CEO-to-be Ternus as a “brilliant engineer and a thinker” who is the “perfect person for the job.”
Shares of Apple dipped less than 1% in after-hours trading Monday following the news.
“Investors will view this as mixed, as this was a sudden move to executive chairman as there was clearly a push for change at the C-suite,” tech analyst and longtime Apple bull Dan Ives wrote in a note to investors on Monday.
The iPhone was only a few years old, and Apple’s $349 billion market cap was just a fraction of what it is today when Cook took the CEO reins in 2011, becoming the seventh CEO in the company’s history and eventually its longest-serving chief executive. Under Cook, the iPhone has grown to become a $210 billion per year business, generating nearly half of the company’s revenue. Apple has also introduced new hit products including the Apple Watch and wireless AirPods, and the services business has mushroomed into Apple’s second largest business, generating $109 billion in revenue last year.
Much of Cook’s tenure as CEO involved dealing with the unpredictable political and economic issues that resulted from Donald Trump’s two terms as president of the United States. During Trump’s first term, Cook proved particularly adept at insulating Apple from tariffs and other risks caused by a trade war with China—an approach that won plaudits from investors but disappointed some of Cook’s progressive fans.
“You will feel his impact in every bit of delight and discovery that grows out of the products and services to come,” Cook said in his letter to shareholders. Johny Srouji, SVP of hardware technologies, will replace Ternus in overseeing the company’s hardware efforts as the new chief hardware officer, Apple said.
It’s not yet clear what Ternus’s compensation will be in his new role as CEO. In a filing Monday, Apple said that it will provide an updated filing within four days “after the information is determined or becomes available.” In his current role overseeing hardware, Ternus did not rank among Apple’s top five most highly compensated executives, according to previous SEC filings.
Cook’s compensation in 2025 was valued at $74.3 million, nearly the same as in 2024, when he made $74.6 million, and up significantly since 2023, when his pay was valued at $63.2 million.
Apple does not maintain employment contracts for its executives and does not guarantee cash severance or the acceleration of equity awards. However, Cook is over age 60 and has more than 10 years’ tenure at Apple, which makes him eligible for retirement vesting, based on the company’s disclosures. Since he is stepping into an executive chairman position, he’ll remain in an advisory role, which means his equity awards will likely continue to vest on schedule. If he retired last September, he would have been eligible for equity valued at more than $256 million, if the performance-based portion paid out at the maximum.
Apple signaled that Cook will continue to play an active role in helping the company navigate tricky geopolitical terrain, noting that as executive chairman he will “assist with certain aspects of the company, including engaging with policymakers around the world.”
Amanda Gerut contributed to this report.
