Apple has had no design chief since Jony Ive left, so CEO John Ternus is doing the job himself

Apple CEO John Ternus displays the iPhone Duo on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, on the Apple campus in Cupertino, Calif. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)Apple CEO John Ternus has quietly taken on a second job. About a month after succeeding Tim Cook, Ternus has made himself the company’s de facto design chief, overseeing both the industrial design team that shapes Apple ‘s hardware and the human interface team behind its software.