Pikachu Visits Apple Park as The Pokémon Company Meets With Apple

Tim Cook is making the most of his final days as Apple CEO, and apparently that includes making sure incoming CEO John Ternus gets properly introduced to Pikachu.

Cook shared a video on X showing himself and Ternus meeting with The Pokémon Company CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara and Pikachu at Apple Park. The visit comes just days before Ternus takes over as Apple’s CEO on September 1.

“Today’s agenda at Apple Park: Introduce the Pokémon team to John, talk gaming, and politely ask Pikachu to stay out of the pond,” Cook wrote. “Two out of three were accomplished.”

Today’s agenda at Apple Park: Introduce the @Pokemon team to John, talk gaming, and politely ask Pikachu to stay out of the pond. Two out of three were accomplished. pic.twitter.com/KzirV3VX8U

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) August 27, 2026

The accompanying video shows Pikachu exploring Apple’s sprawling campus, dancing beneath the rainbow arch and even picking an apple from the orchard. At least one member of the group seemed more interested in exploring than discussing corporate succession.

Apple hasn’t explained exactly what was discussed during the meeting, but Cook said the group talked about gaming. That’s notable given the number of Pokémon games now available across Apple’s platforms. The App Store currently offers Pokémon GO, Pokémon TCG Pocket, Pokémon Champions and more. The latter is the newest addition, bringing competitive Pokémon battles to iPhone and Android alongside its Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 versions.

The timing also makes some sense. The Pokémon World Championships are taking place in San Francisco from August 28 to August 30, putting much of the Pokémon organization in the Bay Area. Cook has also met Pikachu before. During a September 2025 trip to Japan for the reopening of Apple’s Ginza store in Tokyo, the Apple CEO met the Pokémon mascot and later highlighted the encounter as one of the trip’s memorable moments.

The Apple Park visit is unlikely to mean a major Pokémon announcement is imminent, but it does offer a glimpse at the sort of meetings Ternus is being introduced to as he prepares to take over Apple.

Apple announced earlier this year that Cook would become executive chairman on September 1, with Ternus succeeding him after serving as Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering.