Steve Jobs Stepped Down as Apple CEO 15 Years Ago Today

1 hour ago

Tim Cook

Fifteen years ago today, Steve Jobs resigned as Apple’s CEO and Tim Cook took the top job. That handoff lands on an even sharper calendar note this year: Cook steps down on September 1, with hardware chief John Ternus set to become Apple’s next CEO just ahead of the expected iPhone 18 Pro and foldable iPhone unveil.

MacRumors is marking the anniversary of the August 24, 2011 transition, when Jobs formally handed the reins to Cook after a period of medical leave. Jobs remained as board chairman until his death in October 2011. Cook’s fifteen-year run as CEO is now closing on the same date that started it.

Apple already mapped the next chapter in April, when it named Ternus as Cook’s successor and said Cook would move into the executive chairman role. In that seat, Cook is expected to stay engaged with policymakers and help Apple navigate regulatory pressure, while Ternus runs day-to-day product and operations. Ternus joined Apple’s product design team in 2001, became vice president of hardware engineering in 2013, and senior vice president in 2021, with oversight that has spanned AirPods, Mac, iPad, and iPhone.

The timing is deliberate. Cook has said he wanted a clean handoff while Apple’s business and product roadmap were strong, and the company is weeks away from one of its biggest hardware moments in years. Canadian fans will feel that shift the same way everyone else does: new iPhones, a first foldable, and a new CEO all arriving in the same season.

Everyone has been tracking the transition since Apple’s April announcement, Cook’s promise to stay hands-on as executive chairman, and his recent CBS interview on how he hopes the era will be remembered. Today’s anniversary is the calendar bookmark between Jobs’ resignation and Ternus’ first day.

Cook’s last stretch as CEO still includes the usual late-August and early-September crush. After September 1, the public face of Apple’s biggest launches shifts to Ternus, with Cook still in the building as executive chairman.

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