In the words of Apple CEO Tim Cook, the company is cannibalizing itself, but that's no reason to worry.
In a recent interview with The Guardian, Mr. Cook discussed the continued success of Apple, including strong sales figures and an upcoming launch of the iPad Pro. The new tablet, a bigger version of previous iterations of the iPad, may take over and eventually replace iPad minis, a fact Mr. Cook mentioned rather frankly.
"I think it clearly created some cannibalization — which we knew would occur — but we don't really spend any time worrying about that, because as long as we cannibalize [ourselves], it's fine," Mr. Cook told The Guardian.
That idea of self-disruption also carries over to the Apple Watch, though not as heavily. Mr. Cook said Apple anticipates a new sales record this quarter for the Apple Watch, but he hinted at a new medical product Apple may be, or may soon begin, developing.
However, Mr. Cook said he does not want the Apple Watch to become a regulated, government-licensed health product, as he believes it will stifle progress and innovation. Instead, he floated the idea of an ancillary product that would live in the health sphere and bolster Apple's offerings in that arena.
"We don't want to put the watch through the Food and Drug Administration process," Mr. Cook said. "I wouldn't mind putting something adjacent to the watch through it, but not the watch, because it would hold us back from innovating too much. The cycles are too long. But you can begin to envision other things that might be adjacent to it — maybe an app, maybe something else."
Mr. Cook also reaffirmed Apple's commitment to privacy and device encryption, a key focus area, especially if Apple does delve further into health offerings.
"To protect people who use any products, you have to encrypt," Mr. Cook told The Guardian. "You can just look around and see all the data breaches that are going on. These things are becoming more frequent. They can not only result in privacy breaches but also security issues. We believe very strongly in end to end encryption and no back doors."
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