There are at least two candidates for the position of the next Apple CEO after Tim Cook

Today, there are at least two candidates for the position of the next CEO of Apple after Tim Cook leaves the post. Bloomberg writes about the people who could potentially lead the company.

People familiar with the inner workings of Apple said that if Tim Cook had to be replaced urgently, it would most likely be the company’s current COO, Jeff Williams.

In 2015, Cook appointed Williams as Apple’s first COO after Cook himself had held the position under Jobs. That same year, Williams launched the first major new product, the Apple Watch.

But Williams is only two years younger than Cook, and insiders say he is unlikely to become the new long-term leader. Apple’s board would probably like to have a leader who, like Cook and Jobs, would stay in office for at least a decade.

People close to Cook say that he will hold the position of CEO for at least 3 more years, after which he plans to establish a charitable foundation and retire.

If Cook stays on for that long, the most likely successor will be the head of the hardware department, John Ternus. In a company whose success has always been in creating gadgets, appointing a hardware engineering expert as CEO would seem logical.

Ternus, who is still under 50, is more likely than other members of the executive team to remain in the position for a long time, potentially ensuring stability for another decade or more.

Apple is increasingly making Ternus the face of new products. He was at the forefront of the iPad announcement on May 7, leading the introduction of the new iPad Pro and iPad Air. Last year, he traveled to Europe to discuss the company’s environmental initiatives, a key area for Cook.

Perhaps most notably, Ternus has been involved in two of Apple’s most ambitious recent projects: the Vision Pro headset and the self-driving car.

During an interview on singer Dua Lipa’s podcast last fall, Tim Cook said that part of his duties is to prepare several candidates from which the board of directors will then choose. But he personally would like to see his successor come from within the company.