Apple CEO Tim Cook Described As Less Hands-On, More Interested In Broad Implications With iWatch

Apple CEO Tim Cook is the subject of a new profile in the New York Times today, and the profile includes plenty of background information about the executive and his commitment to human rights and environmental issues. But it also contained some information about the rumored iWatch project, how it’s being put together behind the scenes and when it’s slated for public release.

Cook is said to be less hands-on in terms of product development than former CEO Steve Jobs, who was known to be maniacal about even the smallest details of new devices. Specifically regarding the iWatch, the NYT’s sources say that Cook is more content to give over responsibilities for the finer points of product development to other executives, including design chief Jony Ive.

Instead, Cook is said to be more focused on the “broader implications” of the iWatch, including its abilities to monitor heart rate and other key vital signs, and how those could help make health and doctor care more informed and effective. Based on this, it’s reasonable to expect that Health and HealthKit will be a big part of what the iWatch has to offer consumers.

One final detail shared about the upcoming iWatch, whose development still hasn’t even been acknowledged by Apple itself – it will supposedly arrive in the fourth quarter, according to the NYT’s sources. That’s in keeping with other rumors we’ve heard in the past, including a prediction that it’ll arrive alongside new iPhone hardware in September, or separately in October, per Japanese business newspaper Nikkei.