In recent years, a major Apple story (especially in the age of artificial intelligence) has been that the company isn’t moving fast enough in the space to keep up with competitors. Apple’s new CEO John Ternus is pushing software chief Craig Federighi to “accelerate” Apple’s software roadmap, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
At the moment, there is no indication that Apple’s well-known SVP of software, Craig Federighi, will leave the company. In fact, Craig considered developing a succession plan in any sense a very low priority, according to Mark Gurman. That said, Ternus still wants to see a change in the way Craig Federighi thinks about Apple’s software strategy:
In recent weeks, Ternus held a closed-door meeting with Craig Federighi, who became Apple’s AI czar following the firing last year of its former AI leader. Wanting more and frustrated by what he sees as a reluctance to embrace AI as urgently as competitors, Ternus has pushed his software chief to accelerate the company’s road map and quickly move beyond the simple improvements Siri needs.
Much of Federighi’s approach is due to his practicality, which has led his perspective to largely shape how Apple’s software development happens. This left team members feeling like they had “limited influence” over what happens:
Federighi is known for taking a particularly active role in meetings and major decisions, with some employees describing a management style that can leave little room for competing ideas to gain traction. He is also known for vigorously debating opposing points of view, using his mastery of technical details and ability to argue his position to reject proposals he disagrees with. This approach has sometimes frustrated members of software engineering and design teams, some of whom feel they have limited influence on the direction of products.
Another part is that Federighi reportedly only plans for a 12-18 month period, compared to the years-long roadmaps used in hardware engineering. These are some of the gaps that Apple may want to fill in the coming years.
Mike Rockwell is also considering leaving
Separately, Vision Pro and Siri AI leader Mike Rockwell is still seriously considering resigning. He is currently vice president of Siri Engineering:
Management’s concerns go beyond Federighi. Mike Rockwell, who created the Vision Pro headphones as well as led the development of the Siri artificial intelligence, continues to seriously consider stepping down. That could mean leaving his role as vice president of engineering for Siri – or Apple altogether – next year. Such a move would represent a major blow, given its role in bringing the new Siri to market after an embarrassing two-year delay.
In the same report, Gurman also reported that Apple is experimenting with a new development pipeline, giving engineers 50% more time to code and explore more, and spend less time on integration, as coding agents have improved.
It remains to be seen what else might change at Apple to enable faster development times, although it seems likely that Craig Federighi may have to loosen his “firm grip” on the software engineering organization and instead allow other leaders to blossom and act on their own initiative.
My favorite Apple accessory recommendations:
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