The Starters
Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air launch.Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg
Apple Inc.’s iPhone is undergoing the biggest transformation in its history, with the company set to debut three all-new models over three consecutive years.
Despite criticisms that Apple has grown overly dependent on the iPhone — while falling behind in artificial intelligence and other emerging areas — the company is doubling down on its flagship product.
That means stepping up the pace of innovation. After half a decade of modest updates and controversial choices — like the iPhone 15’s titanium casing — a full rethink of the device began taking shape this past September. It started with the all-new iPhone Air, launched alongside redesigned iPhone 17 Pros.
As I’ve previously reported, this transformative period will continue with Apple’s first foldable iPhone next fall, followed by an entirely new high-end model in 2027. That device will feature a curved glass screen, with a camera that’s hidden under the display. But beyond upgrading the products themselves, Apple is changing when it releases new iPhones.
First, a little history: The main iPhone models used to come in the summer — June or July — an approach that continued until the iPhone 4S in 2011. That’s when Apple began releasing the phones in the fall. Though the shift stemmed from delays tied to iOS 5, iCloud and the Siri voice assistant, it turned out to be fortuitous. The change aligned Apple’s biggest product with the critical holiday shopping season.
Now it’s time for another shake-up. In October of last year, I reported that Apple will move away from the annual fall spectacle that it made so famous over the last decade.
The strategy had been successful because it simplified planning and marketing, and made Apple’s revenue predictable to Wall Street. However, the fall release cycle eventually became a burden.
By cramming so many product launches into the same period, Apple had fewer opportunities to spread out revenue across the year. It also strained its marketing and engineering teams, and overloaded suppliers. The troubled rollout of Apple Intelligence in 2024 underscored how that approach was taking a toll.
In recent years, including 2025, Apple has released four main iPhones — two Pro models and two mid-tier versions — in the fall. And it occasionally debuted a lower-cost SE or “e” model in the early part of the year. But in 2026 and beyond, the company’s smartphone release schedule will look markedly different.
Apple plans to unveil three high-end models — the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and a new foldable — in fall 2026. Then, roughly six months later, it will roll out the iPhone 18, iPhone 18e and potentially a refreshed iPhone Air. I expect this pattern to continue for years to come, with Apple launching between five and six new models annually.
The Information reported that a second-generation iPhone Air had been postponed from next fall into 2027 in order to add a second rear camera (and that a vapor chamber and beefier battery are in the cards). The news outlet also cited poor sales as a cause for the schedule change.
But from what I’ve heard, the second-generation iPhone Air hadn’t actually been earmarked for next year — at least not in recent months. So this wasn’t a delay due to the phone’s sales performance. The fact that Apple named the device the iPhone Air (rather than the iPhone 17 Air) signaled that it didn’t want to tie the product to an annual release schedule.
The iPhone Air.Photographer: Eric Thayer/Bloomberg
I’m told that the main focus of the second Air will be a move to a 2-nanometer chip, rather than major structural changes. The chip upgrade should help improve the Air’s battery life — the biggest drawback of the first model.
Adding a second rear camera for ultrawide shots is technically possible, but I find that idea strange. The phone’s “plateau” area (where the camera is located) is already crowded. Redoing that entire section just to add the least-used iPhone camera seems like a lot of work for a phone that few people are buying. The only scenario where this makes sense is if the foldable iPhone’s dual rear-camera design eventually trickles down to standard models.
Apple developed the Air believing it would make up 6% to 8% of new iPhone sales, I’m told. That roughly matches the performance of the iPhone 16 Plus model that it replaced. Apple touted the Air heavily during its September keynote presentation, but it hasn’t done much marketing since then. It’s clear that Apple never really anticipated much fanfare for the Air.
Like the iPhone mini models of 2020 and 2021, the Air is a device that some loud Apple commentators on social media insisted they wanted. Yet when it came time to make purchasing decisions, shoppers went with the far more practical Pro models that offer better battery life, cameras and heat management. At $100 less than the iPhone 17 Pro, the Air simply isn’t a great value.
While Apple would never say this publicly, the truth is that the iPhone Air is essentially a technology exercise and a prototype en route to the foldable iPhone. As I’ve noted before, it will use many of the same materials, miniaturization techniques, internal components, batteries and software optimizations. And this isn’t about acclimating customers to thinner devices; it’s about preparing Apple’s supply chain.
As for the new schedule, Apple aims to have steadier revenue throughout the year, reduce strain on employees and manufacturing partners, and prevent its premium and budget models from cannibalizing each other’s marketing. It also gives the company multiple chances each year to counter new releases from competitors like Samsung Electronics Co., which has long spread out its Galaxy and foldable launches.
We’re seeing something similar with Apple’s software. For years, the company has released its major new operating systems in the fall, occasionally adding a smaller spring update. With the iPhone launch schedule shifting, those spring releases are becoming more critical. We’ll get a preview of this approach next spring with the new Siri, destined for iOS 26.4.
Moreover, Apple is launching a wider range of new products than it has in years. The first half of 2026 will bring major smart home devices, the iPhone 17e, several updated Macs and refreshed iPads. The second half will feature three iPhones, new Apple Watches and even more Macs.
The lulls between Apple product cycles are disappearing, giving the company more revenue opportunities throughout the year and easing the strain on employees and suppliers that came with once-a-year bonanzas. In other words, Apple is trying to have it all.
The Bench
Apple’s current Mac Pro design from 2019.Photographer: Brittany Hosea-Small/AFP
Apple relegates the high-end Mac Pro desktop to the back burner. Up until the early 2010s, Apple’s Mac Pro was a staple of its computer lineup — a fan favorite among video editors, photographers, designers and other creative professionals.
Then, in 2013, Apple hobbled the desktop computer by releasing a version that customers likened to a trash can. It was a bold but impractical design that the company ultimately apologized for.
The problem wasn’t solely the Mac Pro’s looks: Executives later admitted that the design backed Apple into a “thermal corner,” meaning it was nearly impossible to upgrade with more powerful chips without causing the computer to overheat. The device became the most controversial Mac since the Power Mac G4 Cube in 2000.
Apple’s fix came in 2019 with a completely redesigned Mac Pro tower that evoked the classic aluminum approach from over a decade earlier. At the time, Apple pledged that the Mac Pro would be updated regularly and remain a critical part of the Mac family. But things didn’t play out that way.
The next major update didn’t arrive until 2023, when Apple finally transitioned the desktop to in-house chips with the M2 Ultra Mac Pro. Two years later, that model remains largely unchanged. And it’s been overshadowed by the Mac Studio, which received the M3 Ultra chip earlier this year while the Mac Pro stayed put.
Now here’s the bad news: That doesn’t look set to change anytime soon. There’s no longer an M4 Ultra in the works (a Mac Pro to support it was also nixed), and the next high-end desktop chip will be the M5 Ultra. So far, Apple is only focused on a new Mac Studio for the processor. That suggests the Mac Pro won’t be updated in 2026 in a significant way.
From what I’ve heard inside the company, Apple has largely written off the Mac Pro. The sentiment internally is that the Mac Studio now represents both the present and future of Apple’s professional desktop strategy.
The dashboard screen and steering yoke of a Tesla Cybertruck.Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg
Tesla is finally adding support for Apple CarPlay to its vehicles. It’s no secret that Elon Musk has long held a grudge against Apple. Whether it’s been griping about the company’s restrictive App Store rules or its years-ago attempt to poach Tesla Inc. engineers for an Apple car, Musk has made his feelings clear. Yet there’s an undeniable reality: He remains deeply reliant on Apple. The App Store is how he distributes X and Grok, and most Tesla owners live inside the Apple ecosystem. That means they’re eager for their cars to play nicely with their iPhones.
Tesla has made some progress on that front. In 2022, it added Apple Music. A year later came Apple Podcasts. Then, in 2024, Tesla debuted an impressive Apple Watch app. And now, finally, the automaker is planning to fully support CarPlay. As I reported last week with Ed Ludlow, the change could happen in the coming months — delivering a holy grail to iPhone-toting Tesla drivers.
Musk long resisted the move in order to protect Tesla’s own infotainment system, so what changed? The electric car landscape is shifting globally, and Musk’s stubbornness on CarPlay has started to cost him. Now he’s doing what’s necessary to keep sales moving.
If Apple were still building a car, I doubt he would give in. But that dream is dead, and Musk needs every advantage he can get to lock down his $1 trillion compensation package, which requires Tesla to hit certain sales milestones to fully pay out.
Roster Changes
Apple’s Jeff Williams.Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
Longtime operating chief wraps up his time at Apple. Jeff Williams, the company’s chief operating officer since 2015, has now finished his tenure at Apple. When he announced his retirement in July, the executive immediately handed off the COO title to lieutenant Sabih Khan. But he remained a senior vice president in charge of health initiatives, the Apple Watch and design.
In recent days, Apple held a retirement party for Williams with a slew of VIPs from within the company. And this past Wednesday, the company hosted an on-campus goodbye event for Williams — with Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and Williams’ family in attendance. Along the way, Williams officially handed off his remaining responsibilities to other Apple executives. His last day was Friday.
As I reported last month, the management changes included moving the Health and Fitness+ teams under one roof. That operation is now in the services group reporting to Eddy Cue. Development of watchOS, meanwhile, shifted to Craig Federighi’s software engineering organization. And sole ownership of Apple Watch hardware now lies with John Ternus’ hardware engineering group.
The remaining piece of the puzzle was design. As the company announced in July, those teams — led by Molly Anderson and Alan Dye — are reporting directly to Cook. Williams’ exit marks the biggest departure from Apple since Jony Ive left in 2019 and, as I’ve said a few times now, I expect more shifts to come down the road.
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