Apple’s John Ternus will run one of the world’s most powerful companies; work and mine

During his 15-year reign as Apple’s top banana, Tim Cook has become at once famous, more powerful than he could have imagined, and much richer. Many estimate Cook’s current net worth to be around $3 billion, a fortune he’s earned mostly through performance-based offerings while Apple’s market cap has grown more than 11x on his watch to nearly $4 trillion.

But this job comes with a lot of baggage, too. Cook also had to look at two Trump administrations and one Biden presidency — each with its own take on Big Tech, China, and law enforcement. Cook has also faced the FBI for hacking, spent years in court defending the App Store against accusations that Apple turned the iPhone into an illegal control system, and agreed to remain in the Chinese market in a move that drew a lot of attention from human rights groups. Finally, Cook saw the company’s strongest bet — the Vision Pro title — bomb with consumers. This says nothing about AI, where the results are still unknown. The CEO is coming John Ternus he takes it all.

Here are some of Cook’s biggest battles over the years.

Surely we all remember the 2016 FBI encryption war? After a mass shooting at a holiday gathering in San Bernardino, California, the FBI asked Apple to help unlock the gunman’s iPhone. Cook refusedthey argue that encryption is the only way to deal with the disclosure of public secrets and that forced violations can lead to danger. The standoff ended when the FBI found another solution, but it established Apple as a private company and set up years of conflict with governments around the world. Ternus will receive that knowledge and the responsibilities that come with it.

App Store Unbelievable wars You haven’t been a walk in the park for Cook, either. Epic Games sued Apple in federal court for requiring apps to use Apple’s in-app payment method and taking a 30% cut (and the judge pressed Cook on why users can’t just pay developers directly for lower prices, his answers did little to dispel his suspicions). Apple won a major victory in 2021, the court refused to call it exclusive, but it was ordered to allow manufacturers to connect to external payment methods. It slowly followed suit, calling for a 27% commission on foreign purchases (another discount!), and the courts found it contemptible. The Ninth Circuit Court upheld the decision in late 2025, and after a request for a rehearing was denied last month, Apple is now planning to appeal to the Supreme Court, which had previously refused to hear its appeal. The lower court will have to determine what Apple can charge.

The Epic saga is only one stage in the battle against mistrust. The US Department of Justice sued Apple in March 2024, accusing it of illegally dominating the smartphone market by restricting third-party software and device manufacturers – think competing watches, digital wallets, and messaging services – in ways that make it difficult for users to abandon the iPhone. A federal judge denied Apple’s request to dismiss the case, meaning it could drag on through the courts for years. And this week, Apple revealed that it is facing a fine of $ 38 billion in India, where regulators found it guilty of abusing its position in the software market and that Apple has refused to provide financial information that is required – the burden of the charge is that Apple’s market share in India is still very small, about 9%, giving them an unusual way to challenge their findings. Ternus will receive this battle in the middle of the river, and the type of money of the App Store under direct risk.

China has been stable and persistently volatile, too. Cook built Apple’s manufacturing operations around China’s infrastructure, which made the company increasingly dependent on a country whose government grew bolder and more unpredictable over time. They have also done construction to work in the Chinese market – especially in particular remove VPN software from the China App Store and store the iCloud data of Chinese users on state-controlled servers. Cook has shown skill during Trump’s first term in protecting Apple from tariffs and war threats, in part by cultivating a personal relationship with Trump — who said Cook’s retirement “a wonderful person!” Apple has already signed that Cook will continue to help Ternus negotiate areas as the executive chairman – acknowledging that these relationships are fraudulent and that Cook’s experience remains very important.

However AI is perhaps the most recent and unsolved problem that Ternus is presented with. Apple’s AI chief, John Giannandrea, will leave the company next month more delay in the release of Siri’s powerful AI. Instead of relying on its own brands, Apple has turned to both Google Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT empowering some of Apple Intelligence. Former market analyst Bob O’Donnell he told Reuters On Monday, Ternus’ main challenge would be to “find a good AI story and offer together something that depends on Apple’s strengths and less on other people,” although some have argued that the company will look smart in anticipation of the high-cost competition that is playing out between the big AI outfits of today.

Finally, Apple’s executive returns are largely understated but mean. Ternus will welcome a rebuilt leadership team after several departures from Apple last year, including COO long term, ordinary counsellorand UI design theme. It’s a challenge and an opportunity you’ll need to put your own stamp on things quickly.

The link to many of these challenges is that Cook’s greatest skill was his ability to navigate difficult relationships with governments and partners while keeping the business afloat. Whether Ternus has the same skills, or whether Cook’s continued presence as executive chairman should cover any gaps, could be among the most interesting questions of the transition.

The looming question that remains about Ternus’ reign is whether the world that made Apple the most important company in the world will end. Many industry executives believe that AI assistants will be the first way people interact with services, offering the App Store and 30% of its memory. Families have the potential to force new devices that destroy the power of the iPhone into our lives, such as whatever OpenAI has in the works, and Ternus may find himself managing more than complicated relationships and lawsuits.