Tim Cook’s tenure as CEO is over. Apple still has an important job for him.
On Tuesday, John Ternus took over from Cook as CEO. Following Apple’s previously announced succession plan, Cook is now executive chairman of Apple’s board of directors.
Cook, the man President Donald Trump unintentionally called “Tim Apple” in 2019, will now engage “with policymakers around the world,” the tech company previously said.
He’s had plenty of experience with that, particularly in an increasingly mercurial Washington, where a tech company can go from a vital partner to a national security threat in a matter of weeks (just ask Anthropic).
Under Cook’s leadership, Apple lavished Trump with gifts, including a special inscribed piece of glass with 24-karat gold base and a custom-made $5,999 Mac Pro. Cook personally donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration, and Apple donated an unknown amount toward the construction of the White House ballroom, which will replace the now-demolished East Wing.
Trump praised Cook after Apple announced the succession plan.
“I have always been a big fan of Tim Cook, and likewise, Steve Jobs, but if Steve was not taken from the Planet Earth so young, and ran the company instead of Tim, the company would have done well, but nowhere near as well as it has under Tim,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on April 21.
When needed, Cook has also handed Trump major announcements, including an additional $100 billion investment in US manufacturing.
“Today’s announcement is one of the largest commitments in what has become among the greatest investment booms in our nation’s history,” Trump said in August 2025 when Cook presented him with the plaque and the news of the additional investment.
In the meantime, Apple has continued to manufacture iPhones overseas — despite occasional Trump threats to curtail the practice — and has secured major tariff exemptions.
It doesn’t mean there haven’t been dust-ups. In May 2025, Trump said he told Cook he didn’t want Apple building products in India.
“I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” Trump said at the time. “I said to him, ‘My friend, I treated you very good. You’re coming here with $500 billion, but now I hear you’re building all over India.”
Ternus doesn’t have the same type of background.
Ternus doesn’t appear to have the same type of political background. According to federal campaign finance records, Ternus’ largest donation appears to be the $5,800 he gave to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s campaign in 2021 when Democrats held the Senate majority.
Cook has also maintained a presence around the White House, from Trump’s second inauguration to the recent premiere of the Melania documentary. Cook has faced some backlash for his relationship with Trump, but he says he’s neutral.
“What I do is I interact on policy, not politics,” Cook said in March. “I focus on policy, so I’m very pleased that the president and the administration is accessible to talk about policy.”
Steve Jobs believed that everything needed to flow from the customer experience. Apple can continue to rely on Cook’s knowledge of a very important customer.