Tim Cook's Apple legacy: ten biggest wins and misses as he steps down
After 15 years as Apple CEO, Tim Cook is handing the role to hardware chief John Ternus. His tenure was marked by record market valuations alongside several high-profile setbacks.
Tim Cook took over Apple's leadership in 2011 from its co-founder, inheriting a company under enormous expectations. He is now being succeeded as CEO by hardware executive John Ternus after 15 years at the helm.
Wins
Under Cook, Apple's services business expanded significantly, encompassing the App Store, iCloud, Apple Pay, Apple Music and others, generating $100 billion in combined revenue last year. The company also completed a shift from Intel processors to its own custom Apple silicon chips, starting with the M1 in 2020 and finishing the transition by 2023. Cook also oversaw the launch of new product categories, including the Apple Watch and AirPods, which gained health-monitoring features such as ECG readings and sleep apnea detection.
In 2018, Apple became the first US company to surpass a $1 trillion market valuation, later reaching $2 trillion, $3 trillion and $4 trillion milestones. Cook also stood firm on user privacy, refusing in 2015 to build a backdoor into an iPhone for the FBI, a stance Apple has echoed more recently in a dispute with the UK government.
Misses
Among Cook's setbacks is the Apple Vision Pro, a costly headset with limited practical use that reportedly saw production and marketing cuts due to weak sales. Apple also spent over a decade and more than $10 billion on its self-driving car initiative, known as Project Titan, before ultimately shutting it down. The Siri voice assistant lagged behind competitors for years, and its long-promised AI-powered overhaul faced repeated delays, now expected to launch this fall.
Apple also faced legal challenges over its App Store practices, including a lawsuit from Epic Games and regulatory pressure in the European Union, as well as the troubled 2012 launch of Apple Maps, which has since improved considerably. Another ongoing challenge has been managing the relationship with US President Donald Trump, a task Cook will continue handling as executive chairman after stepping down as CEO.
