Brief Overview
- Apple held its first event under new CEO John Ternus, who took over from Tim Cook after 15 years.
- The company unveiled its first-ever foldable iPhone, along with the iPhone 18 Pro, Pro Max, new Apple Watches, and AirPods.
- With an engineer now leading Apple, expectations are high for bolder hardware innovation in the years ahead.
After months of anticipation, Apple’s annual product launch event, Surprise and Shine is almost here. Scheduled for September 9, 2026, at its Cupertino campus, this will be the first product launch led by John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO.
The 2026 Apple event will start at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time and will be streamed on Apple’s website, YouTube, and the Apple TV app.
What Is Expected to be Announced in the Apple Event
The biggest reveal will be Apple’s first foldable iPhone. Expected to be called the iPhone Ultra, this new iPhone will open up like a book (similar to a small iPad). The outer screen is about 5.5 inches. Once unfolded, it stretches to nearly 7.8 inches.
Apple will also launch the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. As expected, these iPhone 18 series phones will feature the new A20 Pro chip. Made on a 2nm process, so it should run cooler and use less power.
Additionally, they also get Apple’s new C2 modem along with new camera upgrades. Interestingly, we will see new colors like a dark cherry shade. And hopefully, Apple doesn’t do a light shade as they did with the old versions.
One thing missing: the regular iPhone 18. Apple is holding it back for spring 2027, along with a cheaper iPhone 18e. Looking back, this has become the pattern – launching premium phones in fall and budget phones in spring.
At the same time, the new Apple Watch models and updated AirPods are all expected to be shown at the 2026 Apple launch event. Apple also confirmed release dates for iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27.
Will the New iPhones be More Expensive?
Before the event, some analysts are warning about pricing.
Building the foldable iPhone costs more, and that could push Apple to raise prices across the board. That’s a tough call for Apple, since higher prices could hurt sales.
Pre-orders for the new iPhones should open later this week. The new phones are expected to hit stores by September 19, 2026.
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And… A Big Change at the Top
Tim Cook became the CEO of Apple in 2011, after Steve Jobs stepped down. In his 15 years, he turned the company into one of the most valuable companies on earth.
But his focus was mostly on things like supply chains, operations, and growing Apple’s services and software, things like Apple Music, iCloud, and the App Store.
On the other hand, John Ternus – who joined Apple in 2001 – spent his whole career in hardware. He became Vice President of Hardware Engineering in 2013, then Senior VP in 2021.
He has worked closely on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, AirPods, and Vision Pro.
Hopes Are High for the Hardware Side
Now that Ternus is in charge, many people are hopeful about what’s next. Cook’s years were strong for services and software, but hardware changes felt slower and safer in his last few years.
Ternus is an engineer, not a business or operations guy. He’s spent his whole career building actual products.
This is the reason people are expecting him to push harder on hardware and take bigger risks with new designs, and the foldable iPhone might just be the start.
For now, the big question is simple: can Ternus turn his engineering background into the kind of hardware breakthroughs Apple fans have been waiting for?
FAQs
Why did Apple change its CEO?
Tim Cook led Apple for 15 years and decided to step back, so the company promoted John Ternus, its hardware chief, to take over and become executive chairman himself.
When will the foldable iPhone be released?
It was announced at the September 9, 2026 event, with pre-orders expected later that week and the phone reaching stores by around September 19.
What are the expected specifications of Apple’s foldable iPhone?
It’s expected to have a roughly 5.5-inch outer screen and a larger 7.8-inch inner screen that unfolds like a small iPad.
