Apple COO Jeff Williams, once seen as Tim Cook’s natural successor, is retiring this year. With no clear backup plan in place, attention has shifted to hardware head John Ternus. Tim Cook is expected to continue leading Apple for the next few years.

Tim Cook has effectively led Apple, achieving significant sales milestones, particularly with the iPhone. However, recent analyses suggest that the company may require a product-focused CEO to enhance its position in the competitive AI landscape.

The latest tremors came when Apple announced chief operating officer Jeff Williams would retire by yearend after 27 years. Just a day before, the company’s top AI executive, Ruoming Pang, had left to join Meta, and weeks earlier, another high-level AI researcher, Tom Gunter, had also left. The image of a leadership exodus was forming.