Tim Cook to take direct control of Apple's design team
Apple CEO
Tim Cook
is about to get his hands on one of the company's most prized assets: its design team. Starting later this year, Cook will directly oversee the group responsible for creating those sleek iPhones, elegant MacBooks, and everything else that makes Apple products instantly recognizable.
The shake-up is part of a carefully orchestrated leadership transition. COO
Jeff Williams
, who's been running operations since 2015, is passing the torch to
Sabih Khan
, Apple's senior vice president of Operations, later this month. But Williams isn't disappearing just yet, he'll hang around through the end of 2025, keeping an eye on the design team, Apple Watch, and the company's health initiatives before calling it a career.
Cook steps in as Apple redesigns everything
The transition follows years of upheaval in Apple's design hierarchy. When legendary design chief
Jony Ive
left Apple in 2019 to start his own company, LoveFrom, Williams stepped up to fill the void. At the time, Evans Hankey took over as head of hardware design while Alan Dye continued leading human interface design, both reporting to Williams.
But the design team's leadership structure remained unsettled. Hankey departed Apple in 2023 and is now working with Ive and OpenAI on a mysterious hardware project. Rather than replace her, Apple eliminated the industrial design chief role entirely, consolidating all design responsibilities under Williams.
The timing couldn't be more interesting. Under Williams' watch, the team has worked on major projects including the Apple Watch development and the company's ambitious health initiatives. And now Apple is working on bringing out its biggest software design overhaul in over a decade, the "
Liquid Glass
," a new interface that brings transparency and fluidity across all Apple devices.
Now, with Williams heading toward retirement, Cook is stepping in to personally guide the team responsible for Apple's product aesthetics. For Apple watchers, this is more than just a personnel shuffle, it's Cook putting his personal stamp, and his direct involvement signals just how crucial design remains to Apple's DNA.
The CEO, who built his reputation on operations and supply chain mastery, will now have his hands on the creative steering wheel during what many consider a pivotal moment for the company.
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