Standing a few feet behind Apple CEO Tim Cook, I watched him sway back and forth, clearly enjoying Alicia Keys’ surprise performance at Grand Central Station Friday to kick off the global in-person celebrations of Apple’s 50th anniversary.
After a brief introduction by Apple Radio One DJ Ebro Darden, Keys sang as she played on a pink piano placed just outside the Apple Store, just below the Apple logo and in front of hundreds of people gathered around her on that landing and hundreds more in the Grand Concourse below.
Article continues below
Looking around, I saw various Apple executives, like Greg Jozwiak (Joz), head of global marketing, and John Ternus, head of Apple hardware, swaying, mouthing the words, and grinning from ear to ear. There was no product to peddle (unless you count Apple Music, where Alicia Keys songs are offered). Instead, it seemed like a big sigh from one of the largest and most important companies in the world, which will officially celebrate its 50th anniversary on April 1, 2026.
I’ve long thought that Apple didn’t want to do that: celebrate this milestone properly. There doesn’t appear to be a big tent event similar to what Microsoft held last year for its 50th anniversary. But maybe that made sense. After all, Bill Gates is still here to take the stage and explain what he was thinking and doing in 1975.
The absence of co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs – who died in 2011 – is still deeply felt by those at Apple who knew him, and perhaps no one wanted to have this kind of celebration, which would so clearly highlight the emotional hole at the center.
Still, it was clear that Apple had to do something and do it in a very Apple way.
Picture 1 of 2
After Keys finished and we were all led off the stage and out of the lobby landing, I walked into the Apple Store where Cook and Keys were discussing the event. Leaning forward, they talked about his performance and the moment, then, taking note of all the media and guests around them, turned to the crowd to hug and smile for photos.
“Happy to see all the iPhones,” Cook said. Keys laughed, “Sure, could you imagine anyone wielding anything else?”
They both laughed, the Keys thanked everyone and left.
Picture 1 of 2
Suddenly I found myself next to Cook.
I congratulated him on this milestone and told him that he seemed to finally be embracing the celebration.
“Well, you know how much we hate looking back,” he told me with a smile, adding that they were, as always, focused on the future.
Clearly, Cook has acknowledged Apple’s past and rich history in recent days, most recently in an interview with David Pogue and a letter marking Apple’s anniversary. Clearly, he and Apple are getting better at this.
Cook told me, as I’ve heard others say, that they developed a new muscle: the ability to look back and celebrate.
We chatted some more and I noticed how authentically Apple and, in a way, simple this event was. Cook agreed and we commented on Keys’ choice and his close relationship with Apple.
By now, Cook seemed almost content, and I wondered if I was witnessing a change. While joking about the next 50 years, Cook is perhaps thinking in the short term, say the next five years, where a transition from CEO to something like executive chairman is likely.
Most of us won’t be attending Apple’s 100th anniversary, but I wonder if Tim Cook will celebrate the 60th anniversary or leave that task to Apple’s next line of management, people like John Ternus, who stood a few feet away, clearly enjoying the spectacle.
Follow TechRadar on Google News And add us as your favorite source to get our news, reviews and expert opinions in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on YouTube And TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp Also.
