The AirPods are Tim Cook’s most underrated achievement

Source: The Verge

Apple Silicon chips. The iPhone’s dominance. Apple Vision Pro. During Tim Cook’s 15‑year tenure as Apple CEO there were highs — and, in the case of the Vision Pro, maybe a low — that helped define Apple as one of the most dominant forces in tech even without Steve Jobs. But one product doesn’t get the recognition it deserves, as evidenced by The Verge’s Apple Top 50 products, where the original AirPods don’t even crack the top 10.

The State of Earbuds Before AirPods

Before AirPods, almost all earbuds were still wired to a phone or iPod. Apple’s ads leaned into the aesthetic with vibrant neon backdrops framing dark, dancing silhouettes connected by the iconic, stark‑white earbud wires.

The 2016 Launch

At Apple’s special event in September 2016, Phil Schiller praised the “courage” it took Apple designers to remove the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. A few minutes later, Jony Ive announced the AirPods. A Lightning‑to‑3.5 mm adapter was included for wired headphones, but the future was wireless.

The launch video featured Lil Buck in black‑and‑white, pulling a white case from his pocket, flipping open the lid, inserting the wireless earbuds, and dancing through the streets of Mexico City. It was a moment that reshaped an industry and turned Apple into the most important audio company of the past 25 years.

Why the AirPods Matter

• Removing the headphone jack – Though controversial (see The Verge’s criticism), it forced the audio market forward.
• True‑wireless leadership – The AirPods weren’t the first true‑wireless earbuds (the Bragi Dash, Onkyo W800BT, and Earin pre‑dated them), but Apple’s scale was unprecedented. Apple sold an estimated 14–16 million AirPods in 2017 (CNBC), and the numbers kept growing each year.

Everyday Impact

Untethering from an iPod or iPhone solved a host of practical problems: wires catching on watchbands, backpack straps, collars, or city‑commuting obstacles. Once the initial “looking stupid” phase passed (The Verge article), AirPods became a fashion statement, signaling that the wearer lived in the future—earbuds neatly stored in a charging case without a coiled cable.

Personal Experience

When I first tried them, the open‑ear, one‑size‑fits‑all design felt insecure, and the sound quality was merely fine. What sold me was the integration:

• The W1 chip eliminated Bluetooth hassle—just bring the earbuds near an iPhone and they pair automatically, not only with the iPhone but with other Apple devices.
• Subsequent models added substantial upgrades:
  • AirPods Pro 2 – major noise‑cancelling improvements, better call quality, additional microphones, and advanced algorithms.
  • AirPods Pro 2 & Pro 3 – heart‑rate tracking, live translation, adaptive audio, and the ability to function as over‑the‑counter hearing aids (The Verge review).

Today my AirPods are with me everywhere: work meetings, neighborhood walks (adaptive noise cancelling keeps me aware of surroundings), and home media consumption on my iPad. They’ve become ubiquitous in many lives.

Looking Ahead

While Tim Cook led this period of audio innovation, John Ternus oversaw the development of the first AirPods and continues to do so. With Ternus stepping into the CEO role in September—almost exactly ten years after the AirPods were announced—I expect the AirPods line to keep expanding its integration within the Apple ecosystem and users’ daily routines.

And maybe, if we’re lucky, we’ll get them in a color other than white.