Apple to introduce its new CEO – and a folding iPhone – at annual showcase

John Ternus helms his first major event as head of $4.5tn company, where he announces first foldable iPhone

John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, helmed the company’s annual showcase of new iPhones and other products on Wednesday. It was the first time the public saw the warm and unpretentious demeanor of the executive, who is filling the shoes of Tim Cook and his predecessor, Steve Jobs, at the $4.5tn tech giant.

The event kicked off with a video montage of characters describing the best way to start a movie, from a getaway scene to a closeup of woman revealing her true identity, before the well-known voice of Cook piped in.

“Camera follows a mysterious figure before revealing our main character,” Cook said. “No. Not me. That’s your guy. That’s your opener.”

“I want to take a moment to express what an extraordinary privilege it is to represent the remarkable teams here at Apple,” Ternus said. “I’ve spent much of my life at this company, and I continue to be inspired every single day by the curiosity, invention and relentless pursuit of excellence that define Apple.”

Not much is publicly known about Ternus’s leadership style, even though he has worked at Apple for 25 years . He has kept a low profile and is known for a calm manner and attention to detail . Ternus started at the company in 2001 and in 2013 became the vice-president of hardware engineering. By 2021, he was heading the entire hardware department.

In Apple tradition, Ternus, as the CEO, kicked off Wednesday’s keynote address and cued up the gadget reveals. Apple made big announcements at its “Surprise and Shine” event in Cupertino, California , including its first foldable phone, called iPhone Duo, as well as upgrades to standard iPhones, AirPods headphones and Apple Watch lines.

Ternus hosted the event in a friendly style, presenting himself in everyman attire of a dark, crew-neck maroon sweater and black jeans. Nearly an hour after the event started, he began to tease the announcement of iPhone Duo, saying: “Actually, there is one more thing …”

Then, taking the phone from the back pocket of his jeans and holding it up to the camera, he said with a coy smile, “this is iPhone Duo.”

Ternus cast the Duo, with its wider displays and multidirectional cameras, as an upgrade to the iPhone experience, less as the technological revolution Jobs described when he unveiled the original iPhone in 2007.

He said the Duo “will redefine the experience of using a foldable phone”.

Bob O’Donnell, the president and chief analyst of Technalysis Research, said: “While products like the expected foldable iPhone have been in the works for some time, the fact that, as the new CEO, John Ternus gets to introduce it to the world is hugely symbolic because it shows off how a new era of more interesting new products for the company is kicking off under his leadership.”

Jobs, Apple’s greatest showman, was known for his commanding stage presence, donning his black turtleneck and blue jeans uniform. When he debuted the first iPhone, he paced back and forth on the stage, drumming up suspense, then said: “Every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything.” The crowd went wild.

Cook had a much calmer demeanor, often holding his hands as if clasped in prayer and repeating a similar mantra during Apple’s iPhone events: “We think you’re gonna love it” and “This is the best iPhone we’ve ever created.”

Under Cook, Apple became a hardware juggernaut, and he turned the company into the world’s first trillion-dollar business. Although he was not considered a visionary like Jobs, Cook was credited with the pragmatism that made Apple a lucrative success.

When the company announced in April that Ternus was taking over from Cook , Ternus said he was “profoundly grateful” to “carry Apple’s mission forward”.

“I have been lucky to have worked under Steve Jobs and to have had Tim Cook as my mentor,” he added. “I am humbled to step into this role.”

Cook praised his successor as having “the mind of an engineer, the soul of an innovator and the heart to lead with integrity and with honor”.

Dipanjan Chatterjee, a principal analyst at Forrester, said that Ternus inheriting this legacy would be “both a boon and a burden for him”. The new CEO will need to continue with Cook’s scale and monetization, he said, while also moving toward the future with new advancements in technology other than smartphones.

“His first keynote will set the tone for his vision of Apple’s future,” Chatterjee said.