We believed that Tim Cook’s days at Apple were numbered. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman just completely changed that scenario

It doesn’t matter where or when you read this. It is very likely that today you have seen more than one Apple product around you. Someone answering messages in a iPhone 17 Pro on the Metro, a student taking notes on their MacBook Air in a Starbucks or someone monitoring their physical activity with an Apple Watch during a getaway to the countryside, to name a few everyday scenes.

This massification has a name behind it. Tim Cook. And it is unclear how much longer he will remain at the helm of Apple.

a few days ago, the Financial Times published that the company was preparing for Cook’s departure next year, giving rise to the succession that has been mentioned in technology circles for years. Now, Bloomberg maintains that That scenario is not so imminent. How is it possible that two such reputable media point in different directions? Let’s analyze the context to understand it better.

Hermeticism and calculated silences. Apple is known for its corporate discretion. Not only does it jealously protect the details of its products, but it also leaves little room for knowing its internal movements. There has been no formal announcement regarding Cook’s possible departure. Everything we know comes from specific statements by the executive himself, anonymous sources and analysis by specialists.

In an interview with Wired, published December 4, 2024Cook spoke about his future at Apple. When asked how much longer he saw himself in the company, he responded:

“Now I get asked that question more often than before. As I get older, as my hair turns gray. I love this place (…) It’s a privilege of my life to be here. And I will do it until the voice in my head says, ‘It’s time,’ and then I’ll focus on what the next chapter will be like. But it’s hard to imagine life without Apple, because my life has been wrapped up in this company since 1998. It’s most of my adult life. And that’s why I love it.”

At the beginning of this year, He also participated in the Table Manners podcast. Asked if he would ever retire, he commented:

“Sure, but not in the traditional definition. I don’t see myself at home doing nothing, without intellectual stimulation, thinking about how tomorrow can be better than today. I think I will always have that predisposition and want to work. I mean, I was working when I was 11 or 12… You want to be pushed a little. You want to feel a little uncomfortable… I think I will always want to be pushed.”

Sources: essential, but not infallible. Outside of those public statements, everything else depends on leaks. People with some proximity to the company—direct or indirect—who share information with journalists under condition of anonymity. In those cases, the reliability of the content depends on the quality, consistency and independence of those sources. Any media that aspires to maintain its credibility should meet these standards.

What the Financial Times says. As we say, on November 15, the Financial Times published that Apple was intensifying its efforts to plan Tim Cook’s succession, and that it was preparing for him to step down in 2026. It is the only concrete—unofficial—date mentioned so far.

The article is signed by four journalists, including Tim Bradshawglobal technology correspondent based in San Francisco, and attributes the information to “several people familiar with the discussions” within Apple. It is not a slight conjecture nor an isolated interpretation.

What Bloomberg says. Bloomberg reacted days lateron November 23, with the newsletter from Mark Gurman, one of the journalists with the best access to early information about Apple. He does not rule out that Cook will retire one day, nor that his successor could be someone like Jon Ternus. But he does state something key: “I think the news was simply false.”

According to Gurman, with the information he has been able to verify in recent weeks, it does not seem likely that Cook will leave office in the middle of next year. He even assures that he would be surprised if Apple faced this replacement within the deadlines indicated by the Financial Times. He sums it up clearly:

“Yes, Apple will eventually have a new leader. And yes, it will probably be Ternus. But unless some unforeseen event occurs that forces Cook to resign sooner than expected, that time is not close.”

So who gets it right? At this point, one thing is clear: we cannot say that the Financial Times is right. We also cannot guarantee that Bloomberg has it. It is possible that each media outlet has access to different parts of the same conversation, or that their sources are showing different angles of the same scenario, perhaps with their own interests. Our role, also as a medium, is to offer the most complete “photograph” possible so that you can form your own criteria.

And, with the caution that we are entering speculative territory, it is reasonable to think that there may be internal conversations about the succession, although not all sources seem to agree on what they know, what they think they know, or what they are willing to share.

For now, the only certain thing is that Tim Cook is still at the helm of Apple. An Apple that, since taking office in 2011, has gone from having a market capitalization of 350 billion dollars to more than 4 trillion. More than Alphabet or Microsoft. And in that process, it stopped being a brand perceived as aspirational or exclusive to become an everyday, global and omnipresent presence. Just like what anyone can observe today, from a subway car to a university classroom.

Images | Apple (1, 2)

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