Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

[rp2011]

That’s what happens when there’s no consequences for a lack of innovation and QA.

Why would they go somewhere else when they’d be fired for screwing up constantly?

screwing up constantly? Such as delivering record profits every quarter? Folks forget Apple is the only one of the Mag 7 that HAS TO release new products yearly. Google and Meta are are advertising companies that use the boatloads of advertising money as play money for everything they do. They wouldn't be able to dabble in AI without it. Amazon is a shopping monopoly and Microsoft is a software company. I would say Apple is the only true tech company of the seven with all the products, services, computer chips, cellular chips that they deliver on a yearly basis like clockwork and funding directly from profits from said products, not advertising. I don't know what folks are smoking when they dismiss that.

 

[ghanwani]

Who is reponsible for temporal dithering? I want them to leave.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

Remove the people/dept influencing apple to release old, mundane, buggy software & hardware because they know whatever garbage they churn out people will buy it.

Stop listening to the shareholders.

Well, maybe listen to the shareholders somewhat less, and increase how much they listen to customers, to balance the ratio. As you say, Apple still (has for decades) churns out a lot of mundane, buggy software, and some of the hardware would fit that description too, though if Apple listened to customers more than they do, both complaints and suggestions, they'd have their priorities better in line, and they might lose fewer employees too.

 

[Karma*Police]

It's also the result of the US government bankrolling him

People need to stop with the irrational Elon hate and/or false accusations. The tax credit was available to anyone who had the vision and ability to create an EV that the masses wanted, and that included auto behemoths like Toyota, GM, Ford, Hyundai, VW, etc. and they all failed.

 

[sully54]

I’m sorry to see Srouji go. He’s probably one of the few apple executives who actually delivered. That said, I’m getting more and more excited for apple’s future at every exec that leaves. Apple needs new blood. I’ll be throwing a block party once Cook announces his own resignation.

 

[Octavius8]

Apple digged its own grave with self-complacency and lack of willingness to compete and “make an effort”. Just release marginal updates year after year in phones and tablets.
6 generations of foldable phones and Apple can’t even remove the notch!
Sadly for me as I am to invested in Apple products. And the software quality and innovation is soooo limited in phone, tablet, and the semi-useful Apple Watch, and the worst useless but desirable Watch Ultra. Absolutely useless for athletes or outdoors.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

Who is reponsible for temporal dithering? I want them to leave.

Have you noticed it is much worse on iOS 26 compared to prior OSs, even on the same hardware?

 

[burgman]

This is what happens when companies only cares about pure profits than employees and consumers.

Yeah going to work for non-profits like Meta and OpenAI are so altruistic.

 

[Sasha-1]

Other than Gemini, what invention / innovation has Alphabet done lately?

Quantum Computing. Tensor CPUs that use optical interconnects, which is HUGE. Absolutely, level 4 self driving cars, which are actually on the road driving customers around completely without a driver. They've done plenty.

 

[yabeweb]

wait till someone says: "but the stocks are good, the company is trillions of dollars in value"

that was never the goal of Jobs. The goal was to change peoples lives, not make products that sit on shelves only to make the stocks go up.

I mean, we all want to believe the fairytale, but Jobs wanted the same thing, making money, while it is true that if you make good product people will want it, believing Jobs was all about change people’s lives it is simply silly.

He wanted to sell just as much as TC, he just had a different vision on how to achieve it.

 

[Sasha-1]

I nominate Elon Musk.

Musk is a snake oil salesman. I can't believe you'd nominate him.

 

[Sasha-1]

It’s very simple: Apple has been stagnant since Cook took over. Talented employees want two things: to work on interesting projects and to win. Apple hasn’t done that in a long time.

Meanwhile Elon has built the most advanced spaceships, EVs and is a leader in the two most important emergent technologies: robotics and AI. That’s the result of one man’s will and vision, similar to how Apple was under Steve Jobs; and neither have a reputation for treating their employees well, but they took their BS because they were building cool stuff and winning.

I’ve been saying this for years now. Tim Cook has been one of the worst CEOs and Apple is one super AI smartphone/device away from becoming the next Blackberry.

HA HA HA HA

I can't breathe, stop. I can't stand it.

 

[Sasha-1]

I totally disagree.
Apple's stance on privacy, while not perfect, is a key advantage in the competitive landscape.

Nope, it's like targeted advertising. It doesn't work if it doesn't know anything about you. You can't have a good assistant if that assistant doesn't know you.

 

[Sasha-1]

But clearly not when it comes to AI and voice assistants. It's pretty clear at this point that privacy is the reason Apple has not been able to compete on the AI and voice assistant fronts. Siri was first to market and it's an absolute joke compared to what others are doing.

Apple has had YEARS to figure out how to deliver these kinds of products while remaining true to their privacy-centric approach and they have failed miserably. Don't shoot the messenger, but it's obvious that privacy and AI aren't really compatible and this is a huge problem for Apple moving forward.

Couldn't agree more.

 

[svish]

Lot of changes at Apple. Hopefully more people will not leave. Waiting to see what will happen!!

 

[ghanwani]

Have you noticed it is much worse on iOS 26 compared to prior OSs, even on the same hardware?

I'm not yet on iOS 26. I'm still on 18 and have at least so far successfully refused nudges to update.

 

[RedWeasel]

From a consumer product standpoint IBM has not been doing great for decades. But I wouldn't necessarily turn down working there with a team of researchers.

IBM also owns Red Hat, which is one of the biggest players in the Linux market (probably the biggest in enterprise).

 

[2128506]

As opposed to…..Samsung? Google? Maybe Meta if you count smart glasses, but that category is still pretty nascent.

This has honestly been a pretty boring decade for consumer technology. I don’t think Apple should get singled out.

Apple's schtick was always innovation, thinking outside the box, etc.

If you take that away, they produce good products, but not worth the premium they charge.

 

[antonrg]

The company is haemorrhaging its people. What is happening?

 

[ghanwani]

The company is haemorrhaging its people. What is happening?

iPhones and Macs are causing them eyestrain and headaches due to temporal dithering. And the only way they can switch to alternative hardware that works for them is to quit their jobs at Apple.

Alternatively, no one wants to be around when Apple annouces that the foldable iPhone has gone the way of AirPower and Apple Car.

 

[jecowa]

How devastating to Apple's chip designs would the departure of Srouji be? Srouji has been making chips for Apple for like 20 years. Apple has lost other great chip designers before like Jeff Wilcox who led the design of the Apple M1. Apple probably has other good chip designers.

 

[RedWeasel]

The problem is privacy. Apple's decision to make privacy a cornerstone of their corporate identity has boxed them into a corner. At this point it has become painfully obvious that Apple cannot deliver competitive, much less innovative, AI and voice assistant technologies because of this privacy stance. What do all of the other companies with leading technologies in the AI space have in common? None of them cares much about privacy.

To me, Cook's militant stance on privacy was his biggest mistake.

Privacy is one of the reasons I’m still staying within the Apple ecosystem.

 

[RedWeasel]

Many people believe that AI is the future and that voice-driven conversational interfaces will be one of the next big things to happen.

More and more people believe that it’s a huge bubble that will pop rather sooner than later.

 

[Donkey Man]

HA HA HA HA

I can't breathe, stop. I can't stand it.

Why are you laughing? Can’t stand the truth? Elon is probably the only “outside the envelope” leader these days, whether your political views allow it or not - without his vision, Teslas wouldn’t be on the roads today (regardless of one’s opinion on EVs), nor would we be seeing the world’s largest rocket being recovered by giant clamps.

SJ had exactly the same kind of mindset when going beyond what ordinary customers even thought of wishing. And no other living exec can do that besides Musk.
He, and he alone, would be the one bringing back the simple product matrix to Apple, instead of the absolutely confusing aberration that we see nowadays with iPad and other device lines - for this you need someone to shake things up, not some DEI-complacent moron.

 

[@Brett]

People leave companies all the time. Gurman making a bigger deal than he needs to. And also all the people going to AI work for others will all be out of work when the bubble burst. There is just far too much money being spent for any meaningful ROI. And I think Apple is the best poised to deal with that.