Key takeaways
- Apple display veterans Wei Chen and John Zhong, each with about 30 years at the company, are moving into limited adviser roles. Victor Yin now oversees much of Apple’s display development, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports.
- It is part of a bigger shake-up under CEO John Ternus: Johny Srouji became chief hardware officer, several new vice presidents were named, and some hardware program managers were laid off to remove management layers.
- My view: blaming the display team for the cracking iPhone Duo screens is nonsense. The problem looks like the hinge, and the hinge is hardware engineering, the area Ternus led for years.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, two of Apple’s longtime display leaders are stepping back. Wei Chen and John Zhong, each with about 30 years at Apple, are moving into more limited adviser roles. Victor Yin, who spent years preparing under them, now oversees much of Apple’s display development. Gurman describes it as a succession that has been underway for several years.
It is not the only change. In October, Apple named Rajesh Ambati, Louie Sanguinetti and Derek Shaeffer vice presidents for connectivity hardware and software, gave App Store head Carson Oliver a VP title, and put Steve Smith in charge of corporate development. In April, chip chief Johny Srouji became chief hardware officer. And Gurman reports that some hardware program managers were recently laid off, as Srouji and CEO John Ternus remove layers of management between engineers and senior leaders to speed up development. Apple has not commented.
In the same newsletter, Gurman says Apple is testing OLED displays for the MacBook Air and iMac, but both are “some way off.” The new iMac this week and the next MacBook Air in early 2027 should still use LCD.
| Change | What happened |
|---|---|
| Display leadership | Wei Chen and John Zhong (about 30 years each) move to adviser roles, Victor Yin takes over much of display development |
| Hardware | Johny Srouji became chief hardware officer in April 2026 |
| New vice presidents | Rajesh Ambati, Louie Sanguinetti, Derek Shaeffer, Carson Oliver |
| Layoffs | Some hardware program managers, to remove management layers |
| OLED Mac | MacBook Air and iMac OLED in testing, “some way off” |
In this article: Don’t blame the display team · The problem is the hinge, and the hinge is Ternus · Ternus is rushing. But where? · From iPhone 5s and X to the Duo · 30 years is enough. Make room for the young · We defended slow Apple. Fast Apple will be hard to defend · Fans have had enough promises · A new Apple? We will see · FAQ
Don’t blame the display team
Some readers on MacRumors already connect it with the iPhone Duo, whose inner screens started cracking in the first days. One called it a “massive failure” and asked if the departures are related. For me, it is a random thing that they leave, or rather, the leadership responsible for displays is changing. That happens in every company and in every state office: with a new leadership come new changes, and the new leaders change certain positions right in their first steps. And here it starts to show.
And that they leave because displays started cracking is the biggest nonsense I have heard. People worked on the Duo for years, not a month. Putting it all on the team that is leaving makes no sense. It is a shared failure of the whole of Apple, not of one team.
The problem is the hinge, and the hinge is Ternus
And it is more likely not a display defect, but a technical defect of the hinge. iFixit’s teardown points exactly there. Before he became CEO, John Ternus led Apple’s hardware engineering for years, so the Duo and its hinge were developed under him. So if we follow people’s logic, they should have thrown out him, not the display veterans.
Ternus is rushing. But where?
This is what bothers me most about Ternus. He is rushing somewhere, connecting everything, and pushing the old Apple to run forward. But the question is: where? To bigger failures and strange gadgets for the home? Or there is something we don’t know. But it is all mega strange, especially for a giant like Apple, which always released things that were almost ideal.
From iPhone 5s and X to the Duo
When Apple released a completely new phone, it always got the best. The iPhone 5s got Touch ID. The iPhone 6s got 3D Touch. The iPhone X got Face ID. And what do we see now with the Duo? A camera worse than in the regular iPhone 17, which costs less than half. On Apple’s own spec sheet, the iPhone 17 has “100% Focus Pixels,” while the Duo has “Hybrid Focus Pixels,” the same label as the budget iPhone 17e. Touch ID, like in the old iPhone SE. And when the phone is open and someone calls, there is no earpiece on the inner screen, so the sound goes to the loudspeaker. Where is the privacy?
It is only pretty, but at the same time very fragile, and inside it is a mess with a lot of compromises. That bothers me. This is not the old Apple, which saved the best for its newest models. I can’t even understand what they did. Is the good old Apple slowly disappearing, or is this only a show before the real things Ternus will present as CEO?
30 years is enough. Make room for the young
Does Apple lose anything when people with 30 years in displays leave? Nothing. It is healthy. Practice shows that people who work on the same thing for 30 years have to change at some point, so the company can move further, and give space to the young. In my opinion, they are often more talented and have a different view of things. Only then do we see some real development.
Maybe the young blood will finally give us 120Hz everywhere, and say it is not a feature only for the expensive things. Readers on MacRumors want the same: OLED with 120Hz, and 120Hz finally in the MacBook Air.
We defended slow Apple. Fast Apple will be hard to defend
Being slow does not mean being bad. We always defended Apple’s slowness: it came to the market later, but then its gadget or some function, even years later, became mainstream. But now, when they start rushing and become faster, I am afraid they will have nothing to defend it with. That is only my speculation, but the Duo already shows what rushing looks like.
Fans have had enough promises
One reader on MacRumors joked that he wishes he could have a “$6 billion dollar failure,” and another said fans expect complete perfection. I think fans have simply had enough of the promises and the fake statements I hear lately: that Apple is above everything and the others are nothing. And then, as I said, they rush and they are not ready. That starts to annoy everyone. The only thing we really saw in the last month is strong and loud marketing.
A new Apple? We will see
From what we see, a completely new era of Apple is coming. Ternus as CEO, Srouji in charge of hardware, new vice presidents, fewer managers. Is it good or bad? We have to wait and see, together.
Also on Evolt News: Apple CEO calls rival foldables “cheap and crappy” · Apple’s “Pro and Tell” on October 28
Photo: Apple.
This article is opinion.
Apple display leadership change: FAQ
Who is leaving Apple’s display team?
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, longtime display leaders Wei Chen and John Zhong, each with about 30 years at Apple, are moving into limited adviser roles.
Who now leads Apple’s display development?
Victor Yin now oversees much of Apple’s display development, after years of preparation under Chen and Zhong.
Is the change related to the iPhone Duo screen cracks?
Gurman describes the change as a succession that has been underway for several years. Apple has not linked it to the iPhone Duo, and has not commented on the screen cracks.
Did Apple lay off employees?
Gurman reports that some hardware program managers were recently laid off as Johny Srouji and CEO John Ternus remove layers of management.
Will the MacBook Air and iMac get OLED?
Apple is testing OLED displays for both, but Gurman says the change is “some way off.” The next iMac and MacBook Air are expected to keep LCD.
Sources: Bloomberg, MacRumors, MacRumors Forums, iFixit.
Our Take
Apple’s display veterans stepping back is a normal change of generations, not a punishment for the iPhone Duo. Blaming them for cracked screens is nonsense: the problem looks like the hinge, and the hinge came from the hardware engineering Ternus led.
The bigger question is Ternus himself. He is rushing Apple forward. Whether that leads to a new, better Apple or to more failures like the Duo, we will see.
