At the WWDC 2026 Global Developers Conference held on June 8 in the US, Tim Cook shared emotionally when preparing to close his nearly 15-year journey as CEO of Apple.
One of the most prominent things during my time as Apple CEO was events like this," Tim Cook said in his opening remarks.
He said that the Apple team and the developer community have contributed to creating products that help people learn, innovate and explore the world in new ways.
With the wonderful possibilities that we have just introduced today, I really believe a brighter future is still ahead," he said.
According to statistics from the speech, Tim Cook mentioned thanks 21 times throughout the event.
Previously, on April 20, Apple announced that Tim Cook would leave the CEO position at the end of this summer. His successor is John Ternus - Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering of Apple. The transfer is expected to take place from September 1.
After leaving the CEO position, Tim Cook will take on the role of Executive Chairman and continue to support some of the company's activities.
Tim Cook joined Apple in 1998 and became CEO in 2011 after Steve Jobs passed away.
During his leadership, he oversaw the launch of many important products and services such as Apple Watch, AirPods, Vision Pro, Apple Music, Apple Pay and Apple TV.
Under Tim Cook's management, Apple's market capitalization increased from about 350 billion USD to more than 4,000 billion USD. Annual revenue also increased from 108 billion USD in fiscal year 2011 to more than 416 billion USD in 2025.
Apple is currently present in more than 200 countries and territories, operating more than 500 retail stores worldwide and owning more than 2.5 billion devices in operation.
