Mammoth Positions
Cook’s stake is small compared with the mammoth positions founders like Bezos, Zuckerberg and Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk control at their respective companies. Apple shares are distributed widely among different investors and executives, so the world’s most valuable company has minted very few billionaires among its employees.
When Jobs stepped down in August 2011 and died soon after, Cook had already filled in as interim CEO on several occasions. But investors and analysts were concerned that Apple wouldn’t be able to innovate as much as it did in the past.
While Apple over the past decade hasn’t revealed a new product as groundbreaking as the iPhone, the company still has thrived. Cook has overseen the development of devices like the iPhone X and Apple Watch, new services like Apple Music, and research on new frontiers like self-driving cars and augmented-reality glasses.
Even the pandemic, which has hammered many other parts of the economy, has been a boon to Apple and other big tech companies as people have gotten even more reliant on their products and services.
Their recent success stands in contrast to the economic upheaval caused by the coronavirus: a growing string of bankruptcies, tens of millions unemployed and massive public deficits.
When Apple reported results recently, Cook acknowledged the hardship facing legions of families and businesses.
“We do not have a zero-sum approach to prosperity,” he said on a conference call. “Especially in times like this, we are focused on growing the pie, making sure our success isn’t just our success.”
--With assistance from Tom Maloney and David Gillen.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.