Apple expected to unveil first folding phone, with new CEO Ternus in command

On Wednesday, Sept. 9, Apple is widely expected to unveil a costly folding iPhone at a launch event held at its Cupertino, California, headquarters.

This marks the first major product event under new CEO John Ternus, and the folding handset represents the most significant design shift for Apple's top-tier device since the iPhone X eliminated the physical home button in 2017. The iPhone generated $209.6 billion in revenue, accounting for slightly more than half of Apple's total sales in the last fiscal year.

For Ternus, who led Apple's hardware division before becoming CEO but has stayed largely out of the spotlight except for select product launches and sustainability efforts, this keynote will offer his fullest public remarks yet. He must convince Apple's customer base to embrace a foldable phone priced above $2,000 — a threshold the company, known for mass-market luxury, has never crossed.

Foldable phones have been on the market since 2019, sold by Samsung Electronics and Huawei Technologies, yet demand has stayed largely limited to tech enthusiasts. Despite the high price, research firm IDC predicts Apple could sell out its entire foldable iPhone production and capture 40% of that profitable segment by the close of next year.

Analysts believe Apple's delayed entry into the foldable market could prove advantageous, as the company is poised to solve critical engineering problems, including designing a hinge that is both polished and durable enough to withstand frequent bending while reducing the visible crease along the screen's fold.

Dust and water resistance remain another potential hurdle, where Google's latest Pixel 10 Pro Fold has outperformed Samsung by achieving an IP68 rating — indicating the device is fully sealed against dust and can survive submersion in one meter of water.

The Wednesday gathering is also likely to signal a significant shift in Apple’s yearly product release calendar.

Apple is expected to introduce new smartwatches at the event, but analysts anticipate that updates to its lower-priced iPhone models will be postponed until spring, with Wednesday's focus reserved for the foldable handset and the iPhone Pro and Pro Max lines.

This strategic shift is designed to even out Apple's sales pattern, which normally experiences a revenue surge in the fourth-quarter holiday period across the U.S. and Europe.