Apple CEO Tim Cook has made TIME's annual list of "the 100 most influential people" alongside several other notable celebrities, business executives, scientists, authors, healthcare professionals, iconic leaders and more.
Cook's segment was written by John Lewis, a civil rights leader and Democratic Congressman from Georgia. The chief executive last made TIME's list in 2012, less than one year after the passing of Steve Jobs.
"It could not have been easy for Tim Cook to step into the immense shadow cast by the late Apple co-founder, Steve Jobs. But with grace and courage and an unabashed willingness to be his own man, Tim has pushed Apple to unimaginable profitability—and greater social responsibility. He is setting a new standard for what business can do in the world. Tim is unwavering in his support of an individual’s right to privacy and is not only embracing equality and LGBT rights but advocating for change through his words and actions. His commitment to renewable energy is also leaving our planet a little cleaner and a little greener for generations yet unborn."
While not included in the list himself, Apple design chief Jonathan Ive also wrote a piece on Airbnb founder and fellow designer Brian Chesky, describing him as a "travel revolutionary" that has created a new way to build community through his startup. "Brian Chesky’s audacity is fabulous. He dares to believe that we shouldn’t be strangers, that we can have a sense of true belonging whenever, wherever we travel."
Notable inclusions in the tech industry include YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Xiaomi founder and CEO Lei Jun. Other highly recognizable names making the list include Emma Watson, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Hillary Clinton, Pope Francis, Tim McGraw and Vladimir Putin. Cook was also nominated for TIME's "Person of the Year" award in 2014.
Top Rated Comments
I work for a rather large Silicon Valley company and our CEO has been very vocal about being an ally for the LGBT community.
People sometimes say "so what"? Well, it makes a huge difference in lives of people not in the majority when their corporate culture makes them feel welcome. It makes a difference to teens struggling with depression. It makes a difference to anyone who has felt the sting of what I like to call "otherism", the various manifestations of which I won't debate here.
We've seen celebrities, athletes and entertainers wait until past the prime of their career to come out when it would impact them the least... Tim Cook used the moment when the world's eyes were all focused on him running one of the most valuable companies to reach out and strengthen the bridge of understanding and acceptance in our society.
That alone makes him a great leader.
I'm sick of hearing about every CEO's pet project or their bedroom preferences. How about you get back to work Mr. Cook and start fixing the obvious decline in the utility of products that Apple offers? Ive is out of control, retail is in chaos, and the ongoing rot at the core of OS X has to stop.
Let's see Samsung (and other companies) copy that!
Which will be made harder by his father rejecting him as "satanic".
I don't have any idea what kind of pajamas he wears or what sort of sheets he has on his bed.
Kim Kardashian has a tremendous influence on me. If she appears on TV, I am completely compelled to change the channel. Believe me, her power is unequaled.