It's not as dramatic as Johnny Ive's retirement in 2019, but a change has taken place in Apple executives. It's not that someone is leaving the company, but the key person on the hardware team, Vice President Dan Riccio, is moving to a position dedicated to the secret project.
Riccio joined Apple in 1998, not as widely known as Tim Cook or Phil Schiller. However, since the 2000s, he has been in charge of key roles in developing all of Apple's major products. Riccio became Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering since Bob Mansfield left Apple in 2012, and before that, at the time of the 2010 iPad launch, he was appointed vice president of hardware engineering for the iPad.
At the time, he played this role for two years, but during this period the iPad changed dramatically. The second-generation iPad is much thinner and lighter than the first-generation, but the battery life has not decreased. The 3rd generation iPad has a Retina display and 4G LTE networking. Later, as vice president, Riccio was involved in launching various products. This includes 5G iPhone products released last year, M1-based Macs, and AirPods Max.
In the midst of this, Apple revealed that it was entrusting Riccio to something secretive within the company. According to a publicly released press release, turns Riccio into a new position focused on new projects and reports its progress and achievements directly to CEO Tim Cook. The vacant senior vice president of hardware engineering joined Apple in 2001, followed by John Turners, who appeared at the recent M1 Mac public event.
The first thing that naturally comes to mind about Riccio's new role is the Apple Car or Apple Glass, but it seems that these teams are already running well in their own way. Rather, it is likely that Riccio was deeply involved in the process of creating and running these teams. Instead, I expect Riccio's new project to be closer to his strengths. It is the screen.
Indeed, Riccio has played a major role in the display innovation of the iPad as well as the Mac. He hardly ever appeared in public appearances, but the only exception was when he unveiled the 27-inch 5K iMac in 2014. At the time, he said, "With this new Mac, people can do amazing things. The Mac is the most important creative tool for many, and what we are willing to do is make it better."
I think this is exactly what he will do in his new role. At this point, all Mac product lines are changing, and this work is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Apple is looking for a new technology that will innovate its Mac products in the future, which I see as a touchscreen Mac. Currently, the MacBook is as thin as the iPad, and as you can see on the M1 MacBook Air, the performance is even more powerful. This revolutionary change in the MacBook and MacBook Air product lines is a hint of product changes over the next decade. The remaining scenario is to completely differentiate it from existing products with a screen, especially a screen that can be touched.
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| Maybe sooner or later you'll see a touchscreen like the Microsoft Surface on your Mac |
Apple has long been negative about touchscreen Macs. But the M1 processor changed everything. Apple silicon has enabled completely new development work on the Mac that was not possible with Intel chips. When applied to this multi-touch display, a new device will be born that will completely change the way and appearance of using computers.
What is needed for this is Lizio's ability. Like Microsoft's Surface, touchscreen Macs should work as tablets and laptops, but the one who knows these two products best is Riccio. In particular, the element that determines the success of these products is the display. That's where Riccio has considerable experience. If Apple decides to develop a Mac that supports multi-touch, it is natural for Cook to let Riccio with this expertise devote all his time to the task.
Hints of this move can also be found in Apple's press release. In the case of another senior vice president at Apple, who had moved, it was common to vaguely explain the new role. On the other hand, Riccio is very specific. "I'm excited to be able to focus all my time and energy on the things I love," he said. "It's about creating something new and amazing to be the most exciting while at Apple.
This could take years. But rumors are already full of rumors that Apple is preparing for the next Mac innovation in a way that combines the power of the PC with the versatility of the iPad. If Riccio takes the rudder of this development work, as I'd expect, it could yield more interesting results than the Apple Car.
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