Apple Acoustics VP Leaves Role, AirPods and HomePod Audio Team Gets New Leadership

The team responsible for audio at Apple will soon undergo leadership changes due to the departure of longtime acoustics vice president Gary Geaves, reports Bloomberg. Geaves is stepping down from his role, though he will be replaced with "top deputy" Ruchir Davé.

airpods january
Apple's acoustics group has approximately 300 members that have developed audio technology for the AirPods, HomePods, and other Apple devices. The team was responsible for creating spatial audio, the 3D sound feature that has been built into AirPods, the Vision Pro, and other devices.

AirPods product designer Tang Tan was overseeing the acoustic team under John Ternus, but he started preparing to leave Apple back in December. Since then, the acoustics team has been reporting to Matt Costello, who oversees the HomePod and Beats headphones.

Geaves joined Apple in 2011 from Bowers & Wilkins, and Bloomberg says he will be staying on at Apple as an advisor to Costello as he prepares to retire. Over the course of the last two years, Geaves has been working on an overhaul to the AirPods lineup, and the first updates are expected this year.

Rumors suggest we will see AirPods 4 and new AirPods Max this year, with revamped AirPods Pro to follow in 2025.

Popular Stories

iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
macbook pro blue green

M5 MacBook Pro No Longer Coming in 2025

Thursday July 10, 2025 12:38 pm PDT by
Apple does not plan to refresh any Macs with updated M5 chips in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models are now planned for the first half of 2026. Gurman previously said that Apple would debut the M5 MacBook Pro models in late 2025, but his newest report suggests that Apple is "considering" pushing them back to 2026. Apple is now said to be...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Will Expand to These 8 U.S. States

Tuesday July 8, 2025 11:26 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
iPhone 17 Air Colors Thumb 2

iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air Rumored to Come in These 9 Colors

Friday July 11, 2025 12:30 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air will be available in a total of nine color options, according to new information coming out of Asia. The iPhone 17 Air's expected color options. According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean blog Naver, accessory manufacturers are now producing camera protector rings for the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air in colors to match their...

Top Rated Comments

KENESS Avatar
18 months ago
I suspect the timing is because the revised AirPod lineup is finished. (Internally, at least, they're likely about done.) He probably decided wrapping up the revamp would be his last big to-do before retiring, and now that that is done, he's ready to call it a day at Apple.

The older I get, the more respect I have for people retiring. They've put in a good long life into their career, it's time to just do whatever the eff they want.

Edit: grammar
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citysnaps Avatar
18 months ago

Geaves joined Apple in 2011 from Bowers & Wilkins, and Bloomberg says he will be staying on at Apple as an advisor to Costello as he prepares to retire.
A huge hat-tip Mr. Geaves for all of the outstanding audio projects he's lead at Apple over the years. I'm happy he'll be sticking around as an advisor.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anshuvorty Avatar
18 months ago
EVERYONE IS LEAVING!!! PANIC!!!

APPLE IS DOOMED!!!

/s
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nautilus007 Avatar
18 months ago
hopefully overhaul is more than just a feature bump and Apple actually starts designing again rather than just milking consumers.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bigandtasty Avatar
18 months ago
Lot of turnover lately. Hopefully for the better.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
G5isAlive Avatar
18 months ago
No doubt due to all the people complaining over the rumored lack of new features (except USB C port) in AirPods Max v2. /s

It is amazing how far Spatial Audio has come, thank you Mr. Geaves.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)