Apple CEO John Ternus discusses how Apple decides what design choices belong in products, saying the guiding principle is improving the user experience. In a TIME interview released as a video, he describes how teams work together to identify changes that make products better for users and to rule out ideas he says are frivolous or distracting.
Across the coverage, Ternus also highlights that Apple’s design approach can still include non-functional elements meant to make products more enjoyable. MacRumors points to examples such as an animation when opening the iPhone Duo’s inner display and “Kids Cue,” which shows Peanuts characters on the phone’s outer screen during photos. MacRumors also reports that Ternus connects the same experience-first mindset to Apple’s AI efforts—emphasizing that users should perceive benefits without needing to understand the underlying technology.
Other outlets focus more on Ternus’s role with Apple’s industrial design teams and his continued involvement in design after becoming CEO. Overall, the outlets agree on the central theme that design remains central at Apple, while they differ mainly in the specific product examples and the amount of detail provided.
