Haunted Empire

Former Wall Street Journal technology reporter Yukari Iwatani Kane delves deep inside Apple in the two years since Steve Jobs's death, revealing the tensions and challenges CEO Tim Cook and his team face as they try to sustain Jobs's vision and keep the company moving forward.

Steve Jobs's death raised one of the most pressing questions in the tech and business worlds: Could Apple stay great without its iconic leader? Many inside the company were eager to prove that Apple could be just as innovative as it had been under Jobs. Others were painfully aware of the immense challenge ahead. As its business has become more complex and global, Apple has come under intense scrutiny, much of it critical. Maintaining market leadership has become crucial as it tries to conquer new frontiers and satisfy the public's insatiable appetite for "insanely great" products.

Based on over two hundred interviews with current and former executives, business partners, Apple watchers and others, Haunted Empire is an illuminating portrait of Apple today that offers clues to its future. With nuanced insights and colorful details that only a seasoned journalist could glean, Kane goes beyond the myths and headlines. She explores Tim Cook's leadership and its impact on Jobs's loyal lieutenants, new product development, and Apple's relationships with Wall Street, the government, tech rivals, suppliers, the media, and consumers.

Hard-hitting yet fair, Haunted Empire reveals the perils and opportunities an iconic company faces when it loses its visionary leader.

What really happened inside Apple's empire after the king was gone?

• Leadership Transition: Go inside the boardroom to see how CEO Tim Cook asserted his authority and dealt with the immense pressure of filling Steve Jobs's shoes.
• The Battle for Innovation: Discover the internal tensions and power struggles among Jobs's loyal lieutenants as they fought to define Apple's creative future without their visionary.
• A Global Supply Chain: Follow the author from Cupertino to factories in Asia, exploring the immense challenges of Apple's complex relationships with suppliers like Foxconn and rivals like Samsung.
• Beyond the Myths: Based on more than 200 interviews, this hard-hitting account goes beyond the headlines to offer a nuanced, unfiltered portrait of one of the world's most secretive companies.