Apple CEO John Ternus Featured on TIME Cover for ‘New Era’

Apple CEO John Ternus is featured on the cover of TIME’s “Best Inventions of 2026” edition, which will be available October 26.

Ternus became Apple’s CEO on September 1, succeeding Tim Cook, and unveiled the iPhone Duo eight days later. He joined Apple in 2001 and previously served as senior vice president of hardware engineering.

Ternus discusses the iPhone Duo

In his TIME interview, Ternus said the iPhone Duo stands apart from other foldable smartphones. He criticized earlier examples as “kind of cheap and crappy.”

Ternus also recalled becoming interested in Apple as a child. He was eight when his father bought an Apple II, which he used to play games and develop an interest in the company.

Cook’s role after the CEO transition

Cook remains Apple’s executive chairman, with his main focus on engaging policymakers around the world.

Ternus said Cook has strong relationships and is willing to help Apple where he can. In a separate interview, Cook said he is “not meddling” with Ternus.

Apple’s selective product strategy

Asked about Apple’s large language models for Siri, which a joint Apple-Google announcement said are based on Google’s Gemini models and cloud technology, Ternus said Apple does not have to build every component itself.

He said Apple focuses on areas where it can provide differentiation and directs its efforts toward the parts of products that matter most.