Apple CEO John Ternus is undertaking efforts to restructure the company to accelerate product development and introduce new products more frequently, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Ternus apparently wants Apple to "broaden its range of devices and create a leaner organization with a greater focus on engineering." One proposal under consideration is to rely less on Apple's traditional spring and fall product release cycles, and introduce new devices more quickly and throughout the year. Ternus has also purportedly indicated that Apple must become "more experimental" to remain competitive in the era of artificial intelligence.
Other plans include eliminating some middle-management positions to reduce corporate hierarchy that separates engineers from senior executives. Ternus believes "Apple should hire fewer people, ask more of its existing engineers, and reduce organizational bloat." During a presentation, he reportedly showed a slide detailing annual headcount growth and argued that the "company should be accomplishing more with fewer employees."
Ternus is also seeking new ways to generate more revenue from existing products amid slowing growth in the company's services business. The launch of new services has also been discussed. To cut costs, early planning meetings for 2027 have seen reductions in planned budget increases, flat staffing levels, and reduced marketing spending.
Gurman cautioned that the changes to Apple's long-standing practices will be challenging and could take years to achieve. There are already indications of changes taking place, with dismissals of directors and engineering program managers taking place in the past two weeks.
Those employees were given just weeks to find other positions within the company, and those who do not will be laid off. Other recent cutbacks have focused on the teams responsible for Siri, Vision Pro, AI-related software engineering, and Fitness+. Some employees believe that further layoffs are possible later this year and early next year.
Managers within Apple told Gurman that there is a sense of pressure to move faster, with more "hectic" and demanding "hands-on" work. Product development groups are "being pushed to deliver more products, more frequently and on shorter timelines."
