Apple's top artificial intelligence executive is stepping down and will retire in 2026, the company announced Monday.

John Giannandrea had been at Apple since 2018, where his official title was senior vice president for machine learning and AI strategy.

He will be replaced by Amar Subramanya, who comes to Apple after a brief stint as corporate vice president of AI at Microsoft and more than a decade at Google.

Subramanya will report to one of CEO Tim Cook's deputies, Craig Federighi, rather than to Cook directly, as Giannandrea had.

"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," Cook said Monday.

The abrupt change at a company known for its careful succession planning

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