Apple held its Q3 2026 earnings call on Thursday, marking Tim Cook's final outing as CEO at such events before he transitions to the role of executive chairman. Unsurprisingly, Cook took the opportunity to reiterate his confidence in his successor John Ternus, Apple's current Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering.
"This will be my final earnings call, and John will lead these calls going forward," Cook said at the end of Thursday's call. "The transition is going seamlessly, and I am beyond excited for John to step into his new role and lead Apple into its next era."He is truly one of a kind, and there is no better person to take the helm of the company. As I said, I couldn't be more confident in his leadership, in our executive team, and in the extraordinary people at Apple, who are determined to enrich the lives of our users all over the world. We have a bright future ahead, and I truly have never been more optimistic. So, thank you all."
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Cook announced that he would be stepping down as Apple's CEO earlier this year, with the transition to take place on Sept. 1. Apple is expected to release the iPhone 18 that same month, which would be a significant debut for Ternus as CEO. The company's annual iPhone announcements are its biggest event of the year, with the 2026 release shaping up to be a public test of fire for Ternus.As such, Apple has been making efforts to reinforce the company's faith in its incoming CEO to ensure a smooth transition. Appearing together at Apple TV's Ted Lasso Season 4 premiere on Monday, Cook and Ternus emphasised that the transition was going "great."
