In a new report by Bloomberg, via AppleInsider and 9to5Mac, former Apple CEO Tim Cook was 'enthusiastic' about a foldable iPhone and pushed Apple engineers to develop the device.
The report says that Cook, who was never heavily involved in product development, had seen a large number of foldable phones on a trip to China in 2020, and believed Apple should enter the market.
At around the same time, Apple was already exploring the idea of a foldable iPad, but pivoted to an iPhone following Cook's intervention. The company had already been working on a foldable device since 2016.
This resembles a story from when Apple first began iPhone development, where the company had initially set out to create the iPad, before changing direction to create the iPhone, which went on to become Apple's best selling product.
In the Bloomberg report, a person 'with knowledge on the matter' said:
"Tim was the earliest and biggest champion of this [the foldable iPhone project]... He saw them everywhere in Asia and said Apple needed to play in this space.”
Despite Cook's apparent passion for this project, it will be John Ternus, Apple's new CEO, who unveils the product on Wednesday.
Ternus, Apple's former hardware chief has been positioned as the person behind this project, and whilst undoubtedly he will have been heavily involved, it seems it was Cook who pushed for the folding iPhone.
Tomorrow, we are expecting John Ternus to unveil the device, a decade since the project began and seven years after Samsung first debuted their first foldable.
Here's everything we know about the device so far:
Lead Image: European Commission - Lukasz Kobus
