Profile
Who John Ternus is
John Ternus is the CEO of Apple and a member of its board of directors. Apple's own leadership biography states that he joined the company's product design team in 2001, became a vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2013, and joined the executive team in 2021 as senior vice president of Hardware Engineering.
On April 20, 2026, Apple announced that Tim Cook would become executive chairman and that Ternus would become CEO effective September 1, 2026. That date is now in effect. Cook remains at the company in the chairman role; Ternus holds day-to-day CEO authority.
This website is an independent briefing on Ternus's publicly documented career, engineering work, and the leadership transition. It is not Apple's site and is not endorsed by Apple or by Ternus.
John Ternus at a glance
- Name
- John Ternus (John Patrick Ternus in some biographical accounts)
- Current role
- Chief Executive Officer, Apple Inc.
- CEO effective
- September 1, 2026
- Previous Apple role
- Senior Vice President, Hardware Engineering (2021–2026)
- Joined Apple
- 2001, product design team
- Education
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, 1997
- Before Apple
- Mechanical engineer, Virtual Research Systems
- Known areas of work
- iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, Apple Watch hardware engineering
- Board
- Apple board of directors, effective September 1, 2026
- Age / birth
- Born May 1975; 51 as of September 2026 (month reported; exact day not used here)
Career timeline
Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Competitive swimmer; senior project on a head-actuated feeding device.
Mechanical engineer working on virtual-reality headsets and related hardware.
Product design team. Apple and later profiles identify his first product work as the Apple Cinema Display.
The New York Times, citing a former colleague, says he led hardware engineering for iMacs in the G5 era.
Apple: became a vice president of Hardware Engineering. Oversight expanded to Mac, iPad and AirPods work.
Multiple reports say he took on iPhone hardware, previously overseen by Dan Riccio.
Joined Apple's executive team as SVP of Hardware Engineering, succeeding Dan Riccio in that role.
Reported expansion of his hardware remit to Apple Watch.
Apple announces Ternus will become CEO on September 1, 2026; Tim Cook becomes executive chairman.
Takes office as CEO and joins the board. Cook becomes executive chairman; Arthur Levinson becomes lead independent director.
Latest
Latest updates
John Ternus becomes Apple CEO
September 1, 2026 — confirmed by Apple's April announcement and leadership pages.
How the Cook–Ternus transition is structured
Cook remains at Apple as executive chairman.
What the CEO role looks like on day one
Product calendar, AI pressure, and what Apple has actually said.
Explore
Major topics
Biography
Who he is, education, and the documented career path.
Career
Virtual Research Systems through Apple hardware leadership.
Apple work
iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, Watch, materials and durability.
As CEO
The September 1, 2026 appointment and what is confirmed.
Timeline
A date-ordered record with sources.
FAQ
Direct answers to common questions.
Frequently asked questions
Who is John Ternus?
John Ternus is the chief executive officer of Apple Inc., effective September 1, 2026. He is a mechanical engineer who joined Apple's product design team in 2001 and later led Hardware Engineering.
When did John Ternus become Apple CEO?
September 1, 2026, as announced by Apple on April 20, 2026.
What did he do before becoming CEO?
He was Apple's senior vice president of Hardware Engineering from 2021 to 2026, and a vice president of Hardware Engineering from 2013.
More questions: John Ternus FAQ.
Sources
- Tim Cook to become Apple Executive Chairman; John Ternus to become Apple CEO (Apple Newsroom)
- Apple Leadership — John Ternus (Apple)
- Apple Leadership (Apple)