Apple May Name New CEO Early Next Year: Here's Who Is Likely To Replace Tim Cook

Apple May Name New CEO Early Next Year: Here’s Who Is Likely to Replace Tim Cook

Last updated: 2025/11/17 at 5:12 AM

News Room Published 17 November 2025

Apple CEO Tim Cook is likely to step down from his position next year, and the company has intensified its plans to find a replacement, the Financial Times reports, citing sources familiar with the development.

Tim Cook has been at the helm of the company since 2011, taking over from co-founder Steve Jobs. Under his leadership, Apple’s market cap has seen a meteoric rise, going from $350 billion in 2011 to a little over $4 trillion this year.

While the reason for Cook’s potential departure is unclear, it has nothing to do with Apple’s financial performance, sources close to the development tell the FT. Notably, the company has long faced criticism for its slowdown in innovation and for lagging behind competitors in delivering AI features.

Cook’s most likely successor is John Ternus, Apple’s current senior vice president of hardware engineering. Ternus joined Apple in 2001, and at the age of 50, is one of the company’s younger senior executives. Coincidentally, Cook was also 50 when he took over as the chief executive.

The announcement isn’t expected before the January earnings call, the report states. Announcing the name early next year, however, could give the new leadership enough time to settle before the WWDC in June and iPhone launch in September, sources tell the FT. Nothing has been finalized yet with the sources saying the name and timeline could change over time.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman backs the FT’s reporting on Ternus as the leading candidate, but disagrees with their suggested timeline. “As I wrote a month ago, Apple is due for a major management shake-up and the spotlight is squarely on John Ternus as Tim Cook’s successor as CEO. But I don’t get the sense anything is imminent as the @FT is claiming,” he wrote in an X post.

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The next couple of years are expected to be big for the iPhone. Starting next year, Apple’s reportedly planning to divide its iPhone launches into two major windows. The annual fall event will see the launch of high-end models like the Pro, Pro Max, and a foldable phone, while an event in the first half of the year will be reserved for the base, budget, and Air variants.

Additionally, Apple’s rumored to be working on at least two foldable devices. The foldable iPhone, as mentioned earlier, is expected next fall, while a larger foldable iPad is expected in 2029, after being pushed from its earlier 2028 timeline.