Apple AI chief exits
Apple’s AI head John Giannandrea is set to leave the company this week after his role had already been reduced. (macrumors.com) Multiple outlets reported the departure followed a prolonged step‑back and has been described as part of a broader AI leadership reshuffle. (9to5mac.com)
John Giannandrea is leaving Apple this week, ending an eight-year run overseeing the company’s artificial intelligence strategy. (macrumors.com) Apple said on December 1, 2025 that Giannandrea would step down as senior vice president of Machine Learning and AI Strategy, serve as an adviser, and retire in spring 2026. Apple also said Amar Subramanya joined as vice president of artificial intelligence, reporting to software chief Craig Federighi. (apple.com) Reports on April 13 said Giannandrea’s advisory period ends this week around Apple’s April 15 stock-vesting date, after what Mark Gurman described as a prolonged exit. 9to5Mac said the arrangement let his final stock awards vest before he leaves the payroll. (macrumors.com) (9to5mac.com) The departure follows Apple’s March 2025 decision to remove Siri from Giannandrea’s control and hand it to Mike Rockwell, the executive behind Apple Vision Pro, according to Bloomberg. Bloomberg reported Rockwell would report to Federighi, taking Siri completely out of Giannandrea’s chain of command. (bloomberg.com) Apple’s own December announcement showed how far the reorganization had gone. It said Subramanya would lead Apple Foundation Models, machine learning research, and artificial intelligence safety and evaluation, while other parts of Giannandrea’s group would move to Sabih Khan and Eddy Cue. (apple.com) Giannandrea joined Apple in April 2018 after a long career at Google, and Apple promoted him to its executive team in December 2018. At that point, Apple said he oversaw artificial intelligence and machine learning across products and services, including Core Machine Learning and Siri. (apple.com) As of April 13, 2026, Apple’s public leadership page no longer lists Giannandrea among its executive profiles. The current page lists Federighi, Cue, Khan, and other senior leaders, but not the former artificial intelligence chief. (apple.com) The immediate backdrop is Apple’s uneven push into generative artificial intelligence. MacRumors said Apple cut Giannandrea’s role after the Apple Intelligence rollout disappointed internally and the company’s Siri overhaul kept slipping. (macrumors.com) Apple is now heading toward its next software showcase with a different chain of command. Giannandrea arrived in 2018 to give Apple a central artificial intelligence leader, and he leaves in April 2026 with that work split across Federighi, Cue, Khan, Rockwell, and Subramanya. (apple.com 1) (apple.com 2) (9to5mac.com)
