Apple Names Amar Subramanya as New VP of AI, Succeeding John Giannandrea

In a significant leadership shift, Apple has named seasoned AI researcher Amar Subramanya as its new Vice President of AI, taking over from longtime executive John Giannandrea. The appointment reflects Apple’s accelerating focus on advanced artificial intelligence capabilities as it prepares for a major expansion of AI-driven features across its devices.

Subramanya, an Indian-origin technology leader with decades of experience in the field, joins Apple from Microsoft, where he most recently served as Corporate Vice President of AI. Prior to that, he spent 16 years at Google, including a key role as Head of Engineering for the Gemini assistant, giving him both deep research credentials and extensive experience deploying large-scale AI products.

Reporting directly to Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, Subramanya will oversee a portfolio of critical initiatives. These include Apple Foundation Models, machine learning research, and the company’s ongoing work on AI safety and evaluation, all core components of Apple’s strategy to build more intelligent and personalized digital experiences.

Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed his appreciation for Giannandrea’s contributions since joining the company in 2018. “We are thankful for the role John played in building and advancing our AI work, helping Apple continue to innovate and enrich the lives of our users,” Cook said. Welcoming Subramanya, he added, “AI has long been central to Apple’s strategy, and we are pleased to welcome Amar to Craig’s leadership team and to bring his extraordinary AI expertise to Apple. In addition to growing his leadership team and AI responsibilities with Amar’s joining, Craig has been instrumental in driving our AI efforts, including overseeing our work to bring a more personalized Siri to users next year.”

Apple highlighted that Subramanya’s “deep expertise in both AI and ML research and in integrating that research into products and features will be important to Apple’s ongoing innovation and future Apple Intelligence features.” His arrival comes at a pivotal moment as Apple prepares a more sophisticated and adaptive version of Siri along with broader systemwide intelligence upgrades.

Giannandrea, who previously led AI and Search at Google before joining Apple, has been instrumental in shaping the company’s modern AI architecture. He built and guided teams managing Apple Foundation Models, Search and Knowledge, Machine Learning Research, and AI Infrastructure. According to Reuters, Giannandrea will serve as an adviser to Apple until his planned retirement in spring 2026.

With Subramanya’s appointment, Apple signals a renewed commitment to advancing its AI capabilities and delivering more powerful, personalised experiences to users. The transition marks a key moment for the company as it positions itself for the next era of intelligent technology.