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Tim Cook Secures Tenure as Apple Overhauls C-Suite and Confronts AI Setbacks

Loyal board support shields Cook’s leadership through a sweeping C-suite reshuffle tackling faltering AI initiatives.

Cook has struggled to prove to Wall Street that Apple has an AI strategy that's paying off.
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Apple CEO Tim Cook took the helm of the company in 2011.
Apple CEO Tim Cook

Overview

  • Apple’s COO Jeff Williams will retire by year-end, with Sabih Khan promoted to the role and Kevan Parekh stepping in as CFO.
  • The departures of AI researchers Ruoming Pang and Tom Gunter have deepened concerns over Apple’s stalled AI roadmap.
  • Apple’s shares have fallen 16% in 2025 as investors grow frustrated with delayed AI features and a lack of groundbreaking products.
  • The board, dominated by Cook loyalists Arthur Levinson, Susan Wagner and Ronald Sugar, has shown no appetite for a change in leadership.
  • Hardware chief John Ternus is viewed as the leading internal successor but lacks the operational and financial experience to take the top job.