Cook hands over to Ternus

Tim Cook stepped down as Apple CEO in September, handing over the top job to former hardware chief John Ternus and taking an executive chairman role.

Cook: I'm not meddling

In an interview with The Independent, Cook says he is not interfering in Ternus's work but is available to help and focused on worldwide policy and government relations.

“I'm not meddling. I'm not a meddler.”

Trust and frequent communication

Cook says his relationship with Ternus is built on trust and frequent, significant communication, and that he told Ternus to make the job his own rather than copying his approach.

“make it your own job. Put your time in the things that you can add the most value to around the company.”

Transition planned for years

Cook said the leadership transition to Ternus was designed to be a textbook example and actually started years ago, with everything going exactly as he had envisioned it.

“the best transition ever, a textbook example that people could look back to and learn from.”

Ternus launches iPhone Duo

Ternus introduced the iPhone Duo just days after taking over as CEO, and Cook said he wanted Ternus to have momentum as he began his new role.

“I wanted John to have some wind at his back.”