When all is said and done, I doubt anyone will call 2025 a pivotal year in Apple's history. The company acknowledged that it had failed to deliver on its 2024 promise and introduced a number of impressive but incremental improvements to its existing hardware devices. iPhone Air It's a fun product, but it's unlikely to set the world on fire. 2025 was, above all… a year.
On the other hand, it seems like 2026 will be a big year for Apple in many areas. After several years of calm, it seems that a storm is approaching us.
The beginning of the end
The death of Steve Jobs was a dangerous moment for Apple. The company needed to show it could still thrive without its co-founder and longtime CEO. As a result, this elevated Jony Ive to even greater prominence, giving him control over all of Apple's designs. It has also entered a remarkable era of growth And leadership stability that calmed any questions that might have arisen on Wall Street.
But Apple is now full of long-serving senior managers who have made huge sums of money from Apple's rise to record heights, and many of them are approaching retirement age. The situation remained relatively unchanged until 2025, when several key executives began leaving. These departures were not the end of the story, but its beginning. Next year will see the departure of the old guard and the debut of a host of new faces (most of whom have essentially toiled in obscurity at Apple for a decade or two).
Apple's Tim Cook won't retire in 2026, but preparations for his successor will be in the works.
Apple
It all starts with Tim Cook. Cook just turned 65, and we live in an era where that's barely retirement age. Still, it's hard to imagine Cook wanting to stay at Apple for long. Many sources suggest the company has stepped up its succession planning, and I expect no one is more supportive of this than Cook. Consider this: Cook was given the CEO job at Apple because Jobs was ill, and after becoming CEO, he never managed to use Jobs as a sounding board.
I don't think Cook would want to do that to his successor if he could help it. So while I don't predict Cook will step down as CEO, I do think he will begin a public process of transition to a new role. I fully expect Cook to follow in Jobs' footsteps and become Apple's chairman and then, in the future, step down as CEO and name his own successor. The result: Cook is given the opportunity to provide the expanded oversight and direction that Jobs unfortunately was unable to provide. As chairman, Cook can also focus on international policy and trade, giving the new CEO time to get up to speed on keeping Apple running smoothly. It's a cautious and conservative move that suits Cook perfectly.
We've already seen the beginnings of this, but as Cook puts succession mechanisms in place, I expect many more Apple executives to begin their own exit planning. They may not all leave—Phil Schiller's continued presence at Apple suggests it's very difficult to say goodbye—but I expect many of them to move on to new roles and allow trusted assistants to take on more prominent titles and responsibilities.
In five years at most, Apple will be run by people who were not key players in the Steve Jobs era. Time is ticking.
The Mac Pro was last updated in 2023. This was probably the most recent update.
Foundry
Mac: Expect the unexpected
After several years of continuous use, I expect big changes in the Mac.
Hearing We might see the very first touchscreen Macs this fall, with the debut of the M6 ​​MacBook Pro. I think these will happen (though they may be delayed until early 2027), but I don't expect major interface changes in macOS. I can't imagine Apple expecting the Mac's touchscreen to be anything other than an extra, secondary input device – for quick taps and scrolling, not detailed work. You can do this without updating your Mac interface.
I'm also willing to bet that something unexpected will happen when it comes to pro-level Macs. Mac Pro never made sense in the Apple Silicon era, with Mac Studio taking the high-end Mac crown for now. I have a feeling the Mac Pro will be discontinued. He can't continue his work as is, so either he gets an update (which would be amazing too!) or he goes all the way.
There have been rumors for several years that Apple is planning to release its The cheapest Mac laptop everbased on an iPhone level chip. I think it will finally happen this year and although it won't Really to compete with Chromebooks, it will give Apple access to customers it has never been able to reach before. I'd like to believe that the new MacBook will cost $599, but even if it costs $699, it will be much cheaper than the previous one. MacBook Airwhich retails for $999. And discounts will make it cheaper. Is this the price for M1-level performance? Looks like theft.
Siri won't be completely revamped in 2026, but it will show signs of real progress.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
iPhone: now it gets more interesting
After suggesting that Apple will clear up its AI story in 2025, I don't want to predict that it will figure out Apple Intelligence and Siri in 2026. But I do think it will have a better year than 2025, and that Siri and Apple Intelligence will end the year more capable and useful than they started it. I doubt any new and improved Siri will be as good as we dream, but I think it will be significantly better than today. (And the arrival of an improved Siri will open the door for Apple to ship new smart home products, something the company has been itching to do for at least a year.)
I don't expect Liquid Glass to be canceled under Apple's new software chief. This ship has sailed. But I think we'll see Apple continue to improve Liquid Glass, addressing design flaws and offering more flexibility for users who feel it hurts usability and readability.
But the big news of the year will be the release Apple's first foldable phonewhich will set a record price for a new iPhone (at least $1,999, I predict) and will quickly become the best-selling foldable phone of all time. Even so, this will only be a small portion of Apple's overall iPhone sales, with the more standard iPhone Pro models outselling.
As for the standard iPhone models, I believe reports that Apple is going to split its iPhone releases in two and that the standard iPhone 18 won't debut until 2027. Apple released five all-new iPhone models in 2025, and it's likely six models are in development for the next production cycle. Not all of them are due to ship in mid-September and so they won't make it. Apple will announce the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and iPhone 18 Fold in September and will advertise them everywhere, while cheaper models will wait for the spring.
With a foldable iPhone, a touchscreen Mac, and some big changes at Apple's top brass, 2026 is shaping up to be a year to remember. And hey, if they finally make Siri a little better, wouldn't that be the icing on the cake?
