In October 2024 Tim Cook told the Wall Street Journal what can only be called a lie regarding his use of Apple products “‘Every day,’ he says, “every product.’” This was widely panned in the Apple commentariat as a ridiculous claim. At the time of the interview, Apple offered 25 unique products including 5 iPhones, 4 iPads, 5 Macs, 4 Apple Watches, 6 AirPods, 2 HomePods, 2 Monitors, an Apple TV, and the VisionPro.
Despite the ease and entertainment in chastising Cook’s claim, that is not the point; rather I’d like to stake this as an obviously ridiculous and untrue claim. It came to mind this week while listening to Ben Thompson’s recent interview with United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby. Under his leadership, the airline has strived to not be a commodity product but rather offer a differentiated experience. This includes upgraded bedding, Thompson was praising United for the exemplary bedding to which Kirby replied:
By the way, I’ve never used the bedding either, because I go to sleep as soon as the plane takes off the runway
Hmm, is that a major company CEO admitting that they aren’t the world's single largest power user of their own products? While the humility from Kirby is refreshing compared to Cook’s over compensation, I think this comparison reveals more about the fan bases of each company.
One need not spend ample time on HackerNews.com or FlyerTalk.net to understand that both companies have large and impassioned fanbases. However, the UA fanboys seem to embody a better understanding of the company and the role of a CEO. If Cook had made a similar claim to that posited by Kirby (ie. “I don’t use the Mac because the iPad fits better in my lifestyle”), I predict there would’ve been a five alarm fire in the Apple enthusiast community decrying that Apple’s leader has lost touch. Hence, Cook knows the role he must play and talks up his daily use of all products.
Kirby on the other hand is not afraid to admit ignorance and reliance on others. When discussing his decision making process for rolling out customers enhancements:
Another thing that we do that’s totally different than every other airline is at the end of the year, when we go through our budget every year, I at the end of it say, “Here’s another 150, some number, millions of dollars that I want you to spend on the customer”, I don’t pretend to know what the best thing is, I hardly ever eat the food on airplanes, we spent a bunch more on food, we spent a hundred million more last year on upgrading the quality of wines. Not my thing, but other people do know.
He doesn’t pretend to know what the best thing is! Rather delegate to the people that do. This is the key role of a major company CEO, not to be involved in the minutiae of product decision making but rather orchestrate a team of lieutenants to do so. All the while the CEO must satisfy investors, ensure proper funding is available, inform and placate the board, and in the case of large global companies, manage governments and regulators. At these tasks Cook is a triumph.
The Apple community is stuck on the simple product strategy of the early Jobs return era and cannot comprehend why today’s Apple, which bears minimal resemblance to Apple of the early 2000’s, requires a different type of CEO. One that shifts product decisions down and focuses on managing the infrastructure the world’s largest company.