Apple CEO Tim Cook has no plans to step down anytime soon, even as pressure mounts and criticism mounts over the company's slow adoption of artificial intelligence. Instead, Apple is undergoing its biggest management shakeup in a decade, with Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams and CFO Luca Maestri leaving the company and dozens of other top executives nearing retirement, Bloomberg reported.
Against this backdrop, Meta has lured away one of Apple's leading AI modeling experts, and Apple, according to sources, is winding down an ambitious redesign of the Liquid Glass interface in iOS 26. Meanwhile, the company is already preparing for a generational change: Williams' responsibilities are being distributed among several new executives, including Sabih Khan, the new COO, and other division heads.
Despite Apple's internal struggles, from criticism over its weak AI presence to stagnant product innovation, the board remains loyal to Cook. The company's stock has risen more than 1,500% since 2011, making Cook one of the most successful CEOs in tech history. There is no replacement for him yet: a potential successor, Williams, is stepping down, and other executives either lack the necessary experience or are nearing the end of their careers.
The company's management recognizes that it needs to update its approach: the services division headed by Eddie Cue has publicly warned that Apple could repeat the fate of BlackBerry if it does not adapt to new realities. The first steps have already been taken: Apple has disbanded the Vision Pro team, moved the development of Siri and robotics to other departments, and, according to unofficial information, is considering the possibility of acquiring AI companies such as Perplexity or Mistral.
The key question remains: who would become the next CEO in the event of a force majeure? A potential role could be taken by John Turnus, the current head of the hardware division, who has 20 years at Apple and experience managing key product lines. However, he lacks financial and operational expertise, so he will need a strong team including a CFO and COO.
The "CEO-on-call" scenario, if something happens to Cook, would likely involve an interim board consisting of Khan, new CFO Kevan Parekh, and Cook's longtime advisor Deirdre O'Brien. In the long term, the most likely option is with Ternus.