Apple introduced its new MacBook Pro in a deliberately low-key event led by John Ternus, the company’s new chief executive. Rather than centering the presentation on the CEO, Apple focused on the products, with journalists and creatives exploring demonstrations involving music production, filmmaking, photography and fashion design. The event also highlighted the return of the illuminated Apple logo, suggesting that the company still sees hardware as central even in the age of artificial intelligence.
A low-key debut for Apple’s new CEO
Without fanfare, Ternus walked onto a low stage at a Los Angeles event space, greeted the audience and joined them for a video presentation about the first touchscreen Mac. He then invited a small group of journalists and creatives to try the new laptops and explore demonstrations of their capabilities.
At 51, Ternus is one of Apple’s younger senior executives and had been CEO for less than two months at the time of the announcement. Yet the launch, along with several other recent announcements, made the company’s priorities clear: under its new leader, the focus remains on the products.
The loudest reaction during the presentation came when Ternus revealed that Apple had restored the illuminated logo on its new devices. The decision appeared to underscore Apple’s belief that hardware remains important, even as the technology industry increasingly emphasizes AI.
An Apple veteran shaped by product details
A few minutes after the presentation, I spoke with Ternus for the second time in two days. Steve Jobs had also spoken with me after one of his famous keynote presentations. Ternus is not, and should not be expected to be, Jobs—but his background offers clues about the kind of CEO he may become.
I first met Ternus in 2015, when we spent a day together at Apple’s Input Design Lab in Cupertino. He had recently been promoted to vice president of Mac, iPad, Ecosystem and Audio Engineering, and came across as personable and knowledgeable. After spending four years at a virtual-reality company immediately after college, he had spent the rest of his career at Apple.
The subject of that earlier article was an investigation Ternus had carried out to determine why Apple’s redesigned mouse made unusual sounds as it moved across a table. His meticulous approach reflected the attention to detail associated with Jobs’s perfectionism, a quality Tim Cook also maintained after becoming CEO.
Ternus overlapped with Jobs at Apple for 10 years. He said he had “only a handful of interactions” with the company’s co-founder. “But I always felt like a student of Steve’s teachings,” Ternus said. “And I was very fortunate to work very closely with Tim.”
A CEO defined by products and continuity
Ternus has traditionally been defined by the strength of the products he oversees. “John has an innate sense for great products, and that’s what Apple is,” said Greg Jozwiak, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing and a 40-year veteran of the company.
In some respects, Ternus’s promotion resembles Satya Nadella’s rise to the top job at Microsoft. Nadella, however, was brought in to repair a damaged organization. Ternus is expected to serve as an engine of continuity at Apple. That emphasis helps explain why Tim Cook and Apple’s board were comfortable choosing a longtime insider.
A deeply rooted Apple insider
Ternus’s identity as a deep Apple insider became particularly clear when I asked about the company’s leadership. When asked which chief executive outside Apple he admired, he appeared puzzled. “I didn’t think much about it,” he said.
When I asked whether any business books had influenced him, he replied, “Not really.” He added, “Of course I’ve read the books, but there’s a lot to learn from the people I work with.”
Whenever I tried to determine what Ternus wanted to accomplish at Apple, he redirected the conversation toward his intention to continue the company’s commitment to internal collaboration.
Source: www.wired.com
