Apple News 24 Hours

Last updated: March 23, 2026, 12:30 PM ET

Executive Succession & Corporate Strategy

Speculation surrounding John Ternus as a potential successor to Tim Cook intensified following an in-depth Bloomberg profile, which noted the hardware engineering chief is "well-liked" and credited with reversing "declining product quality" at Apple. Ternus’s influence appears deep, as a separate report suggested he was behind one of the iPad’s most crucial design changes, positioning him centrally in ongoing discussions about the company’s future leadership. Concurrently, Cook recently praised Chinese developers during the China Development Forum in Beijing, though the reception was reportedly muted amid ongoing governmental pressure regarding the App Store. Furthermore, the company is reportedly planning an "elaborate" 50th anniversary party at Apple Park, perhaps culminating a year of celebrations that included the launch of David Pogue’s new book, "Apple: The First 50 Years".

Product Rumors & Future Hardware

The pipeline for future iPhone hardware appears focused on significant overhauls, with reports suggesting the company is preparing "the biggest set of iPhone revamps" in the product’s history, according to Mark Gurman. Specific efforts are reportedly targeting durability for the rumored foldable model, where the iPhone Fold is expected to utilize a new dual-layer ultra-thin glass structure to mitigate display creasing, a known issue that plagued early foldable competitors like Samsung. In other hardware speculation, Apple reportedly explored integrating a camera into the HomePod years prior to the current smart speaker market saturation. Meanwhile, the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are rumored to employ vertically-stacked dies using the Ultra Fusion architecture to achieve performance gains over previous generations, a design decision mirroring that used in Apple’s Ultra chips for faster processing.

Software Updates & Ecosystem Expansion

The free Apple Sports app for iPhone received a trio of functional improvements today, enhancing the experience for racing and baseball fans alike; updates include the addition of probable starting pitchers for MLB games and the display of car numbers within NASCAR leaderboards, alongside new controls allowing users to disable sports betting notifications. In the broader ecosystem, cross-platform interoperability is expanding as AirDrop support is slated to roll out to Samsung Galaxy S26 devices this week via the Quick Share feature, enabling direct file transfers between Android and Apple hardware. On the spatial computing front, the iRacing simulation launching on Apple Vision Pro promises a "level of immersion and fidelity never before seen in sim racing," according to iRacing President Tony Gardner.

Deals, Security, and Media

Consumer hardware saw significant price adjustments across major retailers, with Amazon offering all-time lows, including an Apple Watch Series 11 Titanium model reduced by $150, while clearance pricing on the M4 MacBook Air reached as low as $300 off in various promotions. Separately, the first-generation AirTag 4-Pack plummeted to an aggressive price point of $59.99 on Amazon, driving down accessory costs. In security matters, the Reddit CEO praised the integration of passkeys, noting a hidden benefit of biometric authentication like Face ID and Touch ID over traditional passwords during the industry's transition. This contrasts with Meta’s recent U-turn on end-to-end encryption for platforms like Facebook Messenger, which critics argue leaves users more vulnerable despite prior claims of technical difficulty in implementation. Finally, fans of Apple TV+ sci-fi can look forward to the premiere of the fifth season of “For All Mankind” this Friday.