Phil Schiller steps down from App Store and events role at Apple

Phil Schiller, the Apple veteran who has overseen the App Store since December 2015 and managed Apple Events for years, is stepping down from both roles. The move represents one of the most significant leadership changes at Apple in recent memory, given the App Store’s outsized importance to the company’s services revenue.

Schiller became an Apple Fellow in August 2020, a role that was supposed to let him focus on high-profile projects while shedding some of the day-to-day marketing grind. But he kept the App Store and events portfolios, making the “Fellow” title feel more like a selective retirement than an actual step back. Now, with this departure from those responsibilities, the transition that began five years ago appears to be completing itself.

A nearly four-decade run at Apple

Schiller has been at Apple since 1987. His fingerprints are on some of the most iconic product launches in tech history. He was the senior vice president of worldwide marketing before handing that title to Greg Joswiak on August 4, 2020, the same day he officially became an Apple Fellow.

Before Schiller took charge of the App Store in late 2015, it was under Eddy Cue’s umbrella.

Navigating the regulatory gauntlet

In 2024, he reorganized the App Store into separate teams specifically to meet the requirements of the EU Digital Markets Act, the sweeping legislation that forced Apple to allow sideloading and alternative app marketplaces in Europe.

That reorganization was not without casualties. Matt Fischer, the VP who had been a key figure in App Store operations, departed in October 2024 as part of the restructuring.

Schiller remains an Apple Fellow, so he is not leaving the company entirely. But his step back from the App Store and events effectively ends his operational influence over two of Apple’s most visible functions. After nearly 40 years at the company, that is less a changing of the guard and more the closing of an era.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.