With Apple (AAPL +1.08%) finally jumping into larger smartphones with the iPhone 6, launching an entirely new product category with the Apple Watch and creating new services and platforms with Apple Pay and HealthKit, Apple is undoubtedly entering a new and important chapter in its story. This is why Apple CEO Tim Cook's recent in-depth interview with Charlie Rose is an absolute can't-miss for anyone interested in the tech giant. Here are Cook's five most insightful comments from the interview.
Apple CEO Tim Cook during Apple's 2013 iPad launch keynote. Image source: Apple
Steve Jobs' values live on
When Steve Jobs passed the reins at Apple to Tim Cook, many wondered whether or not the company would be able to sustain the same innovative culture that helps it consistently deliver one smashing success after another. But according to Cook, Jobs' legacy and vision is alive as ever.
[Steve Jobs] is in my heart and he's deep in Apple's DNA. His spirit will always be at the foundation of the company. I literally think about him every day. His office is still left as it was. ... His name is still on the door.
Cook went on to explain that the things that Jobs stood for, such as innovation, focus, simplicity, and always striving for the best, are "still deep in our company."
Thoughts on customer data
People "have a right to privacy," Cook told Rose. While Apple does collect data about users in some areas, Cook emphasized that this isn't built in to the Apple's core business.
Our view is that when we design a new service we try not to collect data. So we're not reading your email. We're not reading your iMessage. If the government laid a subpoena on us to get your iMessages, we can't provide it. It's encrypted and we don't have a key.
In a comment that seemed to be directly aimed at Google, Cook said, "Our business is based on selling [products]. Our business is not based on having information about you. You are not our product."
More new products are coming
The Apple Watch was a big move for Apple. The last time the tech giant entered an entirely new product category was when it launched the iPad in January 2010. But, apparently, Apple could have a few more big plays in its playbook.
"There are products that we're working on that no one knows about, yes -- that haven't been rumored about yet," Cook said.
But don't expect with certainty that we'll see any of these products in the near future. Apple is known for trashing its product plans -- even at the last minute. And Cook says that Apple still isn't afraid to change course if necessary.
And part of some of those are going to come out and be blow-away, probably. And some of those we'll probably decide, "You know, that one we're going to stop." And so, we kick around a lot of things internally. And we might start something and get down the road a little bit, and have a different idea.
An Apple TV is still a possibility
For years the ever-active Apple rumor mill has been on and off about potential Apple television set. Several Apple analysts -- particularly Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White and Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster -- have repeatedly asserted that Apple will launch a television. Yet Apple's only product in the category is still just the set-top box called Apple TV.
Apple TV
But Cook told Rose during the interview that he is still interested in the space and he reiterated that it is no longer the hobby business it was under Jobs.
"TV is one we continue to have great interest in," Cook told Rose. The company's current efforts in TV, with Apple TV, have "far exceeded the hobby label," Cook continued. Cook says that TV is "stuck back in the 70s," hinting that it is ripe for disruption.
With the launch of the Apple Watch, 2015 is likely to be a pivotal year for Apple. But will the next few years for Apple be defined by more than the Apple Watch, Apple Pay, and bigger iPhones? Perhaps other new products and services will emerge -- maybe even a TV? Whatever happens, if Jobs' spirit really does still remain at Apple's core, the next few years should shape up to be very interesting.
