Timothy Donald Cook (born November 1, 1960) is an American business executive who served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Apple Inc. from 2011 to 2026, and has been the company's executive chairman since September 2026. Cook joined the technology company in 1998 as senior vice president for worldwide operations, and later served as vice president for worldwide sales and operations and then as chief operating officer under co-founder Steve Jobs. He was appointed chief executive in 2011, when Jobs resigned due to failing health. Under Cook, Apple grew into one of the world's most valuable companies; in 2025 it was the second largest technology company by revenue in the world, at US$416 billion. Cook led a succession plan that saw John Ternus succeed him as CEO.
During his tenure as the chief executive of Apple and service on its board of directors, he has advocated for the political reform of international and domestic surveillance, cybersecurity, national manufacturing, and environmental preservation. Since becoming CEO, Cook has also replaced Jobs' micromanagement with a more liberal style and implemented a collaborative culture at Apple.
Early Life and Education
Timothy Donald Cook was born on November 1, 1960, in the city of Mobile, Alabama. He was baptized in a Baptist church and grew up in the nearby city Robertsdale. His father, Donald Cook, was a shipyard worker. His mother, Geraldine Cook, worked at a pharmacy. Cook graduated salutatorian from the public Robertsdale High School in Alabama in 1978.
Cook received a Bachelor of Science with a major in industrial engineering from Auburn University in 1982 and a Master of Business Administration from Duke University in 1988.
Pre-Apple Career
After graduating from Auburn University, Cook spent twelve years in IBM's personal computer business, ultimately as director of North American fulfillment. During this time, Cook also earned his MBA from Duke University, becoming a Fuqua Scholar in 1988. Later, he was the chief operating officer of the computer reseller division of Intelligent Electronics. In 1997, he became the vice president for corporate materials at Compaq, but took up his position at Apple six months later.
Apple Era
Early Career
In 1998, Steve Jobs asked Cook to join Apple. In a 2010 commencement speech at Auburn University, Cook said he decided to join Apple after meeting Jobs:
Any purely rational consideration of cost and benefits lined up in Compaq's favor, and the people who knew me best advised me to stay at Compaq... On that day in early 1998, I listened to my intuition, not the left side of my brain or for that matter even the people who knew me best... no more than five minutes into my initial interview with Steve, I wanted to throw caution and logic to the wind and join Apple. My intuition already knew that joining Apple was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work for the creative genius and to be on the executive team that could resurrect a great American company.
His first position was senior vice president for worldwide operations. Cook closed factories and warehouses, and replaced them with contract manufacturers; this resulted in a reduction of the company's inventory from months to days. Predicting its importance, his group had invested in long-term deals such as advance investment in flash memory since 2005. This guaranteed a stable supply of what became the iPod Nano, then iPhone and iPad. Competitors at Hewlett-Packard described their cancelled HP TouchPad tablet computer and later said that it was made from "cast-off, reject iPad parts". Cook's actions were recognized for keeping costs under control, and combined with the rest of the company, generated huge profits.
In January 2007, Cook was promoted to lead operations and was chief executive in 2009, while Jobs, in failing health, was away on a leave of absence. In January 2011, Apple's board of directors approved a third medical leave of absence requested by Jobs. During that time, Cook was responsible for most of Apple's day-to-day operations, while Jobs made most major decisions.
Apple Chief Executive
After Jobs resigned as CEO and became chairman of the board, Cook was named the new chief executive officer of Apple on August 24, 2011. Six weeks later, on October 5, 2011, Jobs died due to complications from pancreatic cancer. Forbes contributor Robin Ferracone wrote in September 2011: "Jobs and Cook proceeded to forge a strong partnership, and rescued the company from its death spiral, which took it from $11 billion in revenue in 1995 down to less than $6 billion in 1998 ... Under their leadership, the company went from its nadir to a remarkable $100 billion today".
On October 29, 2012, Cook made major changes to the company's executive team. Scott Forstall resigned as senior vice president of iOS after the poorly received launch of Apple Maps, and became an advisor to Cook until he eventually departed from the company in 2013. John Browett, who was senior VP of retail, was dismissed six months after he commenced at Apple, and given 100,000 shares worth US$60 million. Forstall's duties were divided among four other Apple executives: design SVP Jony Ive assumed leadership of Apple's human interface team; Craig Federighi became the new head of iOS software engineering; services chief Eddy Cue became responsible for Maps and Siri; and Bob Mansfield, previously SVP of hardware engineering, became the head of a new technology group.
Cook made the executive changes after the third quarter of fiscal year 2012, when revenues and profits grew less than predicted. Forstall's resignation was widely seen as a dismissal, a move that reflected Cook's willingness to make tough decisions to maintain Apple's performance.
Product Diversification and Growth
Considered one of the most successful tech CEOs of the modern era, Cook diversified Apple's product lineup, overseeing the introduction of many new products such as the AirPods, Apple Watch, Apple Vision Pro, AirTag, Apple silicon in its Mac lineup and expanding its services business. This propelled Apple's growth, with Cook doubling the company's revenue and profit from 2011, when he took over, to 2020, and with an increase in the company's market value from $348 billion in 2011 to over $4 trillion in 2026.
Under Cook's leadership, Apple also deepened its investments in Artificial intelligence and Machine learning. The company integrated Neural network-based features into its products, such as the Neural Engine in Apple silicon chips, which accelerated on-device AI tasks. Apple's focus on privacy became a key differentiator, with Cook frequently emphasizing that privacy is a fundamental human right, contrasting with competitors like Google DeepMind and OpenAI in the AI space.
Advocacy and Philanthropy
Outside of Apple, Cook has sat on the board of directors of Nike since 2005. He also sits on the board of the National Football Foundation and is a trustee of Duke University, his alma mater. Cook engages in philanthropy; in March 2015, he said he planned to donate his fortune to charity. In 2014, Cook became the first and only chief executive of a Fortune 500 company to publicly come out as gay. In October 2014, the Alabama Academy of Honor inducted Cook, who spoke on the state's record of LGBTQ rights. It is the highest honor Alabama gives its citizens. In 2012 and 2021, Cook appeared on the Time 100, Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. As of August 2026, his net worth is estimated at $3 billion, according to Forbes.
Cook has also been a vocal advocate for environmental preservation, pushing Apple toward carbon neutrality across its supply chain and products. His leadership style, characterized by collaboration and a focus on social issues, has distinguished him from his predecessor and solidified his legacy as a transformative figure in the technology industry.