Apple has appointed John Ternus as its new CEO, succeeding Tim Cook who will become executive chairman. The article explores Ternus’s estimated net worth from his previous role as hardware chief and contrasts it with Tim Cook’s multi-billion dollar fortune.
Apple has announced John Ternus as the new CEO. Tim Cook, who has led the Steve Jobs-founded business since 2011, will be replaced by him. After a long tenure as Apple’s hardware boss, Ternus is now expected to steer the corporation in an era of artificial intelligence-driven industry transformation. Cook will become the company’s executive chairman when Ternus takes over.
“It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be the CEO of Apple and to have been trusted to lead such an extraordinary company. I love Apple with all of my being, and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with a team of such ingenious, innovative, creative, and deeply caring people who have been unwavering in their dedication to enriching the lives of our customers and creating the best products and services in the world,” Cook reportedly said in a statement.
John Ternus’s Income and Net Worth
Ternus has a net worth in millions as per estimates. He was Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering. According to a source from The Street, his base income during this period was probably close to $1 million. This is based on the median salaries of Apple’s chief operating officer, Sabih Khan, and CFO, Kevan Parekh.
However, apart from the base salaries, there are other aspects in the compensation package and the total takeaway has been north of $20 million per year for people in this designation. Thus, Ternus too is likely to have made a similar amount of money each year. This would put in net worth easily in the millions.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ternus has an estimated net worth of $75 million, accumulated over more than two decades at Apple through salary, bonuses and stock compensation.
Tim Cook’s Net Worth
As of mid-October 2025, Forbes assessed Cook’s net worth to be around $2.5 billion. As CEO of Apple, he supervised a number of significant events, including as the introduction of more recent products like the Apple Watch and wireless AirPods headphones.
During the first 10 years of Cook’s tenure, Apple’s sales and profit doubled. Under Cook’s leadership, Apple also surpassed $1 trillion in 2018. Cook’s base salary is $3 million a year, as per The Street. However, his takeaway is considerably higher given there are bonuses and stock awards. In 2024, Cook took home $74.6 million, while in 2022 Cook ended up getting nearly $99 million in total.
Thus, as CEO of the company, Cook has made more than Ternus and estimates indicate his net worth is more than that of his successor at present.