Apple’s new CEO, John Ternus, has launched his tenure with the announcement of the foldable iPhone Duo, priced starting at £1,999 in the UK. The product reflects a major shift in design and a strategic gamble for the tech giant. The Duo, likely in development for years, was timed to launch Ternus’s leadership with a bold statement about hardware and product design. Ternus took over from Tim Cook at the start of the month.

Design and Innovation

Ternus, a mechanical engineer by training, has focused his career on product development at Apple. The Duo, with a book-style format, is the largest iPhone ever made. When unfolded, it resembles a small iPad; when folded, it takes the form of a wider iPhone. Ternus said the design was inspired by the iPad but aimed to avoid the look and feel of other foldable phones on the market, which he described as “two phones stuck together… making a larger screen feel much smaller.”

“iPhone Duo brings an entirely new design while preserving everything you love and expect from iPhone. It gives you the largest display ever on an iPhone while still fitting easily in your pocket. It reflects extraordinarily complex engineering, yet feels effortless to use, and it makes new experiences possible,” Ternus said during the announcement event.

Market Context and Pricing

Folding smartphones are not a new concept,Samsung and Huawei have offered them since 2019. However, early models faced durability issues. The Duo is the most expensive iPhone to date, starting at $1,999 (£1,475) in the US and £1,999 in the UK, with prices going up to $3,200.

“One of the challenges is, it’s a weird kind of product category,” said Jason Snell, a writer at Six Colors. He noted that foldable phone sales account for around 2% of global smartphone sales. Ben Wood, chief analyst at FDM CCS Insight, suggested that Ternus’s promotion was timed specifically to coincide with “arguably one of the biggest iPhone launches for many years.”

Leadership Transition and Strategic Vision

Ternus was directly involved in developing the foldable iPhone, having spent many years as a top executive in Apple’s hardware division before being named Cook’s successor. Cook was praised for his business acumen,Apple’s market cap grew nearly 13-fold during his decade and a half at the helm—but critics say Apple’s gadgets haven’t had the same “wow factor” since Steve Jobs. Ternus echoed a trademark line Jobs used before big announcements: “But actually, there is one more thing,” before revealing the foldable iPhone.

Carolina Milanesi, an analyst at Creative Strategies who attended the presentation, said the spotlight on Ternus made it feel “almost like he was a product himself.” Altered iPhone design may address criticism that Apple has yet to deliver a major product hit or truly exciting innovation since the first iPhone in 2007.