Good morning. Being a C-suite chief within the age of AI is not any small feat. However when you’re the CEO of one of many world’s largest tech firms, the bar for achievement is even increased.
In a brand new Fortune article, my colleague Geoff Colvin highlights the dilemma dealing with Apple CEO Tim Prepare dinner. Chief government since 2011, Prepare dinner succeeded Steve Jobs after serving as Apple’s chief working officer. As COO, he was chargeable for the corporate’s worldwide gross sales and operations.
“It appears unimaginable that Tim Prepare dinner’s legacy as Apple’s spectacularly profitable CEO might be in jeopardy,” Colvin writes. “However in latest months, and particularly in latest days, the unimaginable has develop into not less than conceivable.”
Some are questioning whether or not Apple is shedding momentum underneath Prepare dinner’s management, as its inventory has declined about 16% in 2025, considerably underperforming each the broader market and tech friends like Microsoft and Meta. Analysts and know-how commentators have criticized Apple for “falling behind” rivals in AI. Current efforts, such because the Apple Intelligence rollout, are seen as underwhelming. And Apple’s high government in command of AI fashions is leaving for Meta.
But, underneath Prepare dinner, Apple grew to become staggeringly profitable. When Jobs beneficial Prepare dinner as CEO, Apple’s valuation was about $300 billion. At present, it stands at $3.2 trillion—a rare compound annual progress fee of 18.4% over 14 years. Actually, Colvin notes that Prepare dinner has generated considerably extra shareholder worth than Jobs did throughout his tenure.
The widespread rise of AI presents a problem that Apple might not have been absolutely ready for. “For an organization of Apple’s scale and stature, lagging behind its main rivals on AI is like lagging behind the competitors on the web in 2000,” Colvin writes. “AI is a general-purpose know-how, and people issues don’t come alongside fairly often. The web was one. So have been digital computing and electrical energy. They alter the world, they usually revolutionize the enterprise panorama for each firm.”
As Colvin places it: “With that in thoughts, it turns into clear how Tim Prepare dinner might be one of many all-time best CEOs from 2011 to now, but won’t be optimum for the AI period.” You possibly can learn extra of Colvin’s evaluation, together with discussions with specialists, right here.
You don’t must be a trillion-dollar firm to really feel the strain for AI to redefine your management. On this new age of AI, product innovation, agility, and transferring shortly—however properly—are crucial to remaining aggressive. Baba Prasad, professor of the follow of management at Brown College, writes in a latest opinion piece that the very nature of management is being remodeled by AI.
Prasad writes: “Within the AI-driven world, visionary agility allows leaders to interpret new info meaningfully, problem what have to be challenged, and steward assets and applied sciences in alignment with broader human functions. These three capabilities—interpreter, challenger, and steward—are the crucial roles of agile management in an AI-driven world.”
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
Leaderboard
Mukul Mehta was promoted to CFO of pharmaceutical firm Novartis (ECN), efficient March 16, 2026. Mukul succeeds Harry Kirsch, who has served as CFO since 2013, and can retire from Novartis after a 22-year profession with the corporate. Harry will proceed in his function as CFO till March 15, 2026. Mukul brings over 20 years of expertise at Novartis. He was just lately appointed to the function of head of BPA, Digital Finance and Tax, the place he’ll proceed till March of subsequent 12 months. His profession consists of serving as CFO Worldwide for 3 years, ad-interim President Worldwide, CFO Prescription drugs enterprise unit, CFO Novartis Enterprise Companies, CFO Prescription drugs Europe enterprise, and Nation CFO of France, Poland, and Norway.
Brandy Richardson was appointed CFO of multi-brand luxurious retailer Saks International, efficient Aug. 18. Richardson succeeds Interim CFO Mark Weinsten, who joined Saks International to steer the corporate’s finance group via the preliminary phases of its transformation following its acquisition of Neiman Marcus Group (NMG) in December 2024. With almost 25 years of expertise, Richardson joins Saks International from Tailor-made Manufacturers, Inc., the place she has served as EVP and CFO. Richardson spent nearly all of her profession at NMG, the place she held a number of finance management roles of accelerating accountability over her 15-year tenure.
Large Deal
Within the first half of 2025, funding for generative AI firms has already surpassed 2024’s full-year document. This surge, pushed primarily by OpenAI’s $40 billion spherical and Scale AI’s $14.8 billion minority stake sale to Meta, highlights intensifying competitors for assets and expertise amongst main frontier mannequin suppliers, in accordance with an S&P International Market Intelligence evaluation.
Traders allotted about $70 billion to generative AI startups within the first six months of this 12 months, up from $58.7 billion in all of 2024. Funding for AI firms with out frontier fashions additionally hit a quarterly document, with $2.4 billion raised in Q2, exceeding the earlier excessive set in late 2024.
S&P International Market Intelligence’s 451 Analysis initiatives that AI coding income will see the quickest progress via 2029, with a compound annual progress fee of 53.4%.
Going deeper
“JPMorgan’s plan to cost for knowledge might ‘cripple’ crypto and fintech startups, execs warn” is a brand new Fortune report by Luisa Beltran.
From the report: “When JPMorgan Chase informed fintechs final month that it deliberate to cost them for accessing its buyer banking account knowledge, it despatched shockwaves via corners of the monetary business. In accordance with 4 business executives, the transfer is a blow to the fintech sector and will show devastating to early-stage startups, together with these within the crypto business. Analysts, nonetheless, suppose mature fintechs like PayPal and Block will possible not really feel a lot consequence from this charge change.”
Overheard
“The companies that win in the long run are those that innovate. That create new merchandise. That reimagine how issues ought to work, and discover radical breakthroughs that impress their prospects in new methods.”
—Alexandra Ebert, chief AI and knowledge democratization officer at Largely AI, writes in a Fortune opinion piece.
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