John Ternus is leading Apple’s first major iPhone launch as CEO, with the company expected to unveil its latest iPhone models and new products.
Apple is set to unveil its latest iPhone lineup at Apple Park on September 9, 2026, in the first major product launch led by new CEO John Ternus.
The event marks a significant change for the world’s most valuable technology company. Ternus took over as Apple CEO on September 1, replacing Tim Cook, who has moved into the role of executive chairman. Apple announced the succession in April as part of a long-planned leadership transition.
The launch is expected to centre on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, alongside Apple’s first foldable iPhone. New Apple Watch models are also expected to feature at the event, although Apple has not officially confirmed the complete product lineup ahead of the keynote. Reuters reports that the foldable will be the most significant change to the iPhone since the iPhone X introduced Face ID and removed the physical home button in 2017.
John Ternus Takes the Apple Stage
The September keynote represents the first major iPhone unveiling under Ternus, who spent his entire Apple career working on hardware.
Ternus joined Apple’s product design team in 2001, became vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2013, and joined the executive team as senior vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2021. He has overseen engineering work across the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and AirPods product lines.
Before joining Apple, Ternus worked as a mechanical engineer at Virtual Research Systems. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
Apple has positioned him as an engineer with deep knowledge of its products and manufacturing process, making the iPhone 18 launch an important early test of how he presents himself to consumers and investors.
Tim Cook Watches From the Other Side of the Stage
For the first time since becoming Apple’s CEO in 2011, Tim Cook will not be the person introducing Apple’s latest iPhone.
Cook became executive chairman on September 1 after leading Apple for 15 years. Under his tenure, the company expanded its product portfolio, built major new businesses such as Apple Watch and AirPods, and grew its active installed base to more than 2.5 billion devices. Apple Services also grew into a business generating more than $100 billion in annual revenue.
Cook has publicly endorsed Ternus, describing his successor as a leader with deep technical knowledge and the ability to continue Apple’s product-focused culture.
The transition means that one of the most recognisable CEOs in technology is moving into the background just as Apple prepares to introduce what could be its biggest iPhone design change in years.
Apple’s First Foldable iPhone Takes Centre Stage.
The most closely watched product at the September 9 event is expected to be Apple’s first foldable iPhone.
Reuters reports that the device could cost more than $2,000, placing it firmly in the premium segment of the growing foldable-phone market. Samsung and Huawei have dominated the category since the first modern foldable smartphones emerged, leaving Apple entering the market several years after its main rivals.
Analysts expect Apple’s reputation and hardware ecosystem to help the company gain share quickly despite the high price.
The device is also expected to put Apple’s engineering capabilities under particular scrutiny. Durability, hinge design, display reliability and the visibility of the fold in the screen have remained major challenges for foldable smartphones.
The launch therefore represents more than another product category for Apple. It is a test of whether the company can enter an established market late and still redefine it on its own terms.
iPhone 18 Pro Models Are Also Expected
Alongside the foldable, Apple is expected to introduce the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
Reports suggest Apple is changing its annual launch strategy this year, with the premium models taking centre stage while lower-priced iPhone 18 variants could arrive later, potentially in spring 2027. Reuters reported that this would give Apple a different product cadence from previous years and place greater emphasis on its most expensive devices during the crucial holiday period.
The Pro models are expected to receive camera and display improvements, although many of the specifications circulating before the event remain unconfirmed.
Apple’s invitation, titled “Surprise and shine,” has also generated speculation about new colours and camera changes, but those details should be treated as rumours until Apple confirms them on stage.
AI Is a Bigger Test for Ternus
While the foldable iPhone is likely to dominate headlines, artificial intelligence may prove to be the more important long-term challenge for Ternus.
Reuters reports that Apple is expected to discuss a significant overhaul of Siri, with Google technology potentially playing a role in the company’s next-generation AI assistant. The broader challenge for Apple is to make AI a compelling part of its hardware and software ecosystem while competing with Google, OpenAI and other major AI companies.
The pressure is particularly high because Apple has traditionally controlled the entire user experience, from hardware and operating systems to its own silicon.
Ternus inherits that strategy at a time when generative AI is changing what consumers expect from smartphones.
Apple’s Supply Chain Remains Crucial
Behind the new products is the same global manufacturing network that has supported Apple’s iPhone business for years.
Foxconn remains one of Apple’s most important manufacturing partners, assembling a large proportion of iPhones.
TSMC manufactures Apple’s custom-designed chips, including the processors that power its iPhone and Mac products.
Corning supplies specialised cover glass used across Apple’s hardware portfolio.
For the foldable iPhone in particular, Apple’s supply chain will face new engineering and manufacturing demands because foldable devices require different displays, hinges and structural components from conventional smartphones.
The Bigger Challenge: Following Tim Cook
The September 9 launch is ultimately about more than the iPhone 18.
Ternus is taking over a company that has become dramatically larger under Cook. Apple went from a market value of roughly $350 billion when Cook became CEO to several trillion dollars today, while its global ecosystem expanded across hardware, services and software.
Apple itself says its active installed base has now passed 2.5 billion devices, while Services has grown into a business exceeding $100 billion in annual revenue.
That makes the succession particularly demanding. Investors will be watching not only the specifications of the new products but also whether Ternus can sustain Apple’s pace of innovation while protecting the enormous financial base Cook leaves behind.
What to Watch From Apple’s First Ternus Keynote
The foldable iPhone will be the clearest symbol of the new era.
But the more important questions are likely to concern Apple’s longer-term direction: how aggressively it moves into foldable devices, how it responds to the AI race, and whether Ternus can maintain the company’s reputation for tightly integrated hardware and software.
For the first time in 15 years, Tim Cook will watch an iPhone launch rather than lead it.
The products revealed on September 9 will therefore carry two stories at once: Apple’s next chapter in hardware, and the beginning of the John Ternus era.
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Apple’s new CEO John Ternus with former CEO Tim Cook. Credit: Apple
Source: Business Connect
