Apple CEO Tim Cook to Deliver 2017 MIT Commencement Address

[HenrikWivel]

How about Danish?

Us Scandinavians are more cold and have a culture of being more direct and open but in a respectful way. We can come across as being confrontational in our tone, both private and in the workplace, bit again it comes from a common respect from each other. That being said, we are increasingly being more careful, in general, not to rub anyone the wrong way, to an extend where it can become difficult to even express and opinion.

Also, sarcasm and irony runs deeply among Danes, so when I hear a keynote or presentation like those Apple have been given us lately, I find it hard to take them seriously. They look, act and speak as if they are a bad imitation/parody of themselves.

 

[deliriumxy]

Nope. How else was I supposed to say that this news is personally interesting to me and might change my planned graduation date? Should I have said: "I'm going to some college (won't say which one) and now I'm thinking about graduating earlier due to this news!". Wouldn't have made any damn sense.

In addition, I put the specific degree to point out that I work in computing and therefore Tim Cook's presence would be a big deal to me.

That said: I am proud of my degree. I've worked my ass off for it for ~17 years (I'm 35 and took a crazy path to get here).

Your message sounds bitter to me. Why be an ass?

 

[AZREOSpecialist]

How about he spend a little time at Apple for a change?

 

[JetLaw]

Tim Cook's brilliance has done what I once thought was impossible...he's made me seriously consider being a Microsoft customer.
[doublepost=1481323329][/doublepost]I think Tim Cook must be getting paid off by John Hodgeman.

 

[elthesensai]

Ready for the MacBook Pro 2017!?!

 

[Appleaker]

Tim has only volunteered to do this because he thinks MIT means Make It Thinner.

I'm sure we'll see an unexpected appearance from Jony Ive

 

[Larry-K]

I for one am saying a magic 8 ball could do a better job as a CEO. It would have more personality on stage at keynotes and answer "Definitely" to "Should we update our aging product lines?" once in a while. Also 8 balls don't say "Awesome" "Pipeline" or "Watchband" so that's already a huge improvement over Timmy right there.

"It is decidedly so."

 

[555gallardo]

Also, sarcasm and irony runs deeply among Danes, so when I hear a keynote or presentation like those Apple have been given us lately, I find it hard to take them seriously. They look, act and speak as if they are a bad imitation/parody of themselves.

I didn't even watch the latest one... Everything regarding the product is available on the official website. Oh wait, saw a bit, they were showing Emojis on a Touch Bar. Pro.

Even those press invites, worst design Apple ever created. There's no passion in them. They feel like a paper that was made because it had to be.

 

[Abazigal]

and how many of those products were not on the roadmap when Jobs passed away? There is more spin in that piece than fricking merry go round.

What does it matter?

Point is, the iPhone was a great product, but never sold in the quantities that it is selling now. And it would not have been possible to sell those quantities if you didn't have a person like Tim Cook managing the supply chain.

I also feel that post Steve Jobs, the annual iOS updates tend to come with more new features compared to iOS 2-5.

Yes, Tim Cook is doing it with a product his predecessor created, which is why Tim is not being credited for reinventing the phone, but for successfully managing the brand and taking it to the next level.

 

[ackmondual]

Made my day

I'm glad my coworkers left for the day, because I laughed hysterically for 10 seconds after reading that :O

 

[elthesensai]

[/QUOTE]Yes, Tim Cook is doing it with a product his predecessor created, which is why Tim is not being credited for reinventing the phone, but for successfully managing the brand and taking it to the next level.[/QUOTE]

And he did it using blast processing! Truly next level.

 

[pika2000]

what are you implying here? that they are too smart to wonder about the release of a product? Consumers who have inquiries on the products they desire are not capable of higher learning "mindsets"? lol just getting clarification here.

What are you implying here? That MIT students should be asking one a CEO about how one wants a new iPhone to look different just because? Or a new Macbook to look different just because?
You could ask those questions yourself if you were one of the graduating students though, nothing wrong with that.
[doublepost=1481340592][/doublepost]

"first openly gay CEO of a Fortune 500 company" That is all he got really. My view he is not doing too great at Apple. Innovation is starting to going down. Products released full of bugs or issues. Apple used to be more innovate than M$, but not anymore.

Define innovation. I guess making a phone to look different every year = innovation for you? Lucky for you, you have plenty of Chinese companies to give your money to with all their cheap new phones coming every few months.
[doublepost=1481340878][/doublepost]

\The only comparison I want to stand by is that of focus. what decisions steve would make today given the changes in technology is purely speculative, but it is clear that he was singularly focused on Apple and the vision he had for the company. And I will reiterate that I would like to see Tim have that focus. It is fact that he is involved in many things outside of Apple and those distractions are what concerns me.

How is Apple's focus different today than before (during Steve Jobs)? iPhone, iPad, iCloud, the move towards mobile and cloud were there under Steve Jobs. Tim Cook continues those vision and focus.
The only issue I have with the current Apple is that Jonny Ive seems to be getting out of hand with some of the design decisions. But the company focus remains strong. The fruits of the labor cannot be observed by expecting a different looking phone every year. Apple is playing the long game.

Same thing with Microsoft. People might be awed by the shiny Surfaces, but that's just marketing fluff for the brand. Microsoft is playing the long game as well, albeit on a different path than Apple. Just because two companies make computers, doesn't mean one has to beat another in whatever imaginary metrics you might have.

 

[diipii]

"Mr. Cook's brilliance as a business leader, his genuineness as a human being, and his passion for issues " ...there are no words........

 

[nt5672]

Apple's obsessional thinking to glue all of which can have the equipment to remedy the pancake. These Apple devices do not support, therefore, to install the parts that move, such as a hard disk. Equipment, gluing makes computers disposable stuff. If the client breaks glued iMac hard drive (whose age might have only two years) does not make sense to repair it? Preparing the computer by gluing I think is complete nonsense.

This is in essence my problem with Apple right now. My use case means the SSD will last about 2 years. Now I hear you saying get AppleCare and it will be replaced for free. Yes it will, but the replacement will not be new and I'll probably get, if I am lucky, another 1 year out of the replacement. AppleCare is now gone and I need a motherboard replacement which is a significant cost. If Apple is going to sell disposable computers then the price new fully tricked out needs to much much much lower. With non-replacable SSD and memory the high price and solid engineering of Apple computers has lost its value because they have to sent to the landfill when the weakest components fail.

This is great for Apple, since they get a new sale. This is an epic fail for me, because it more than doubles my cost to use Apple products.

 

[Agent007]

Maybe Will Hunting should deliver the commencement address while Tim Cook buffs the floors until they're as shiny as overpriced white plastic.

 

[ThomasJL]

Ummm, this is some good popcorn.

If you just judged by these comments, you wouldn't be aware of the reality of quarterly revenue of $46.9 billion and quarterly net income of $9 billion

Tim Cook is a brilliant leader. His accomplishments are incredible. It's amazing how small minded jealous people who have little success in life work to tear down those who actually succeed at life.

It's people with your mindset in Silicon Valley that will never hire the next Steve Jobs, but instead just hire people based on status quo credentials like having a Harvard MBA. It's people with your mindset in Silicon Valley that look down upon a no-name hungry innovator from a non-prestigious background, but instead look favorably upon someone with "experience" at McKinsey or Goldman Sachs.

 

[dannys1]

Almost anyone on this forum could have taken over where Steve left this to Tim Cook and done the same thing.

Wow...

 

[Rob_2811]

@Abazigal

It matters because Technology is not static. So many people fall into the trap of thinking that the big thing now will be the big thing in three or four years time. The iPhone won't sell in the numbers it is now forever.

It would be foolish to think that Cook is more of a product person that Jobs was, great and handling the supply chain maybe but that isn't going to help them break into new markets.

How is Apple's focus different today than before (during Steve Jobs)? iPhone, iPad, iCloud, the move towards mobile and cloud were there under Steve Jobs. Tim Cook continues those vision and focus.
The only issue I have with the current Apple is that Jonny Ive seems to be getting out of hand with some of the design decisions. But the company focus remains strong. The fruits of the labor cannot be observed by expecting a different looking phone every year. Apple is playing the long game.

Same thing with Microsoft. People might be awed by the shiny Surfaces, but that's just marketing fluff for the brand. Microsoft is playing the long game as well, albeit on a different path than Apple. Just because two companies make computers, doesn't mean one has to beat another in whatever imaginary metrics you might have.

I don't think the focus does remain strong really.

It is clear that the focus of the company is being deferred by Cook to some of the people around him to an extent that it never would have been under Jobs. The car project the silly gold watches they have got Ive written all over them. it isn't just the design decisions where Ives influence is evident, its actually in the direction of the company aswell. All of the Genius grove nonsense Angela Ahrendts brainchild I imagine. Ive spending his time designing chairs for the new campus. I could go on..

I just dont see how this kind of stuff would not be a distraction to be honest.

 

[G-News]

They're quickly transforming from a tech company into a fashion company. I don't like that one bit. It's in the products (form over function), in the ads (more emotional instead of factual), in the Focus (watch bands instead of Mac Pros). The fashion market differs from the technology one by one major factor imo: loyalties change even more quickly. That cannot be good for Apple.

 

[kdarling]

Point is, the iPhone was a great product, but never sold in the quantities that it is selling now. And it would not have been possible to sell those quantities if you didn't have a person like Tim Cook managing the supply chain.

1. Cook hasn't been the COO managing the supply chain in over a half decade. He was bumped to CEO. Classic case of the Peter Principle.

2. Apple constantly claims that their sales are held back by lack of product availability. In other words, their sales quantities could be even higher with a better managed supply chain.

 

[kaneda]

What are you implying here? That MIT students should be asking
Define innovation. I guess making a phone to look different every year = innovation for you? Lucky for you, you have plenty of Chinese companies to give your money to with all their cheap new phones coming every few months.

Well, Technology is more than phone. Apple has been stuck with smartphone since Steve Jobs passed away. Apple TV is could have been big if Apple spent time on it, instead they did watch, more people are watching tv then wearing a watch. Apple is doing what M$ did, they think more of buying companies instead making the products themselves and improved it.

 

[Timothy Leo Crowley]

It's people with your mindset in Silicon Valley that will never hire the next Steve Jobs, but instead just hire people based on status quo credentials like having a Harvard MBA. It's people with your mindset in Silicon Valley that look down upon a no-name hungry innovator from a non-prestigious background, but instead look favorably upon someone with "experience" at McKinsey or Goldman Sachs.

yup, it's all the fault of "people like me".

I'm guessing you're unable to name your logical fallacy.

sigh.

 

[stevet]

Wow...

Really insightful comment Danny. Did you write that using one of your 10 apple producks? BTW, where's your Mac Pro and Series 1 watch? And you call yourself an Apple lover.