Jeff Williams is stepping down as Apple’s chief operating officer after more than 27 years. The company said he will retire at the end of the year, with a transition beginning this month. Williams was rumored to be a leading contender for successor to Apple CEO Tim Cook.
In a statement, Apple called Williams a key architect of its global supply chain and a driving force behind Apple Watch and Health initiatives. “Apple wouldn’t be what it is without him,” Cook said in the official announcement.
From iPod to Apple Watch
Williams’ retirement was no surprise inside Apple and has been planned in the works for some time, as part of a “long-planned succession” set to conclude by year’s end.
He joined the company in 1998, and was appointed COO in 2015, overseeing global manufacturing, logistics, procurement, and product fulfillment.
Early in his tenure, he helped strengthen the company’s production infrastructure during the iPod era, supporting Apple’s explosive growth. He later led the development of the Apple Watch, coordinating teams across hardware and software in what became Apple’s first major new product after the death of Steve Jobs.
The Apple Watch debuted in 2014 and has since become the centerpiece of Apple’s wearables division. Williams also oversaw the company’s Health efforts, integrating features that now support wellness, fitness, and clinical research across devices.
In 2019, with the departure of design chief Jony Ive, Williams took on additional responsibilities by collaborating closely with Apple’s industrial design team, adding one of the company’s most influential creative groups to his responsibilities.
Apple promotes a ‘brilliant strategist’
Following Williams’ retirement, Apple is set to promote Sabih Khan to chief operating officer. The transition will begin later this month, with Khan taking on one of the company’s most critical executive roles after working alongside Williams for nearly three decades.
Khan has been with Apple since 1995 and has overseen global operations since 2019. His responsibilities have included manufacturing, procurement, logistics, and supplier responsibility programs across the company’s international supply chain.
According to Apple, Khan has played a central role in expanding the company’s manufacturing footprint in the United States and Southeast Asia. He has also supported environmental initiatives and led programs aimed at improving labor conditions and education for workers at production sites.
Cook described him as a strategic leader with deep operational expertise. In the company’s announcement, Cook called Khan “a brilliant strategist” and said he brings steady leadership and long-term experience to the role at a time of continued global complexity.
A broader shake-up in Apple’s leadership
Williams is among several top Apple executives who have left the tech giant recently; longtime hardware executive Dan Riccio and App Store head Matt Fischer departed in 2024.
Meta has reportedly hired Ruoming Pang, who leads Apple’s AI model development team and came to the company in 2021, and offered a $200 million pay package. He is expected to join Meta’s new Superintelligence Lab alongside talent from rival firms OpenAI and Anthropic.
As Apple refocuses on leadership and design direction, it’s also pulling back on one of its boldest UI experiments in iOS 26 Beta 3 after mixed reactions.