Key AirPods and HomePod chief to leave Apple as audio team gets a reshuffle

When you think of Apple you probably think of the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and the Mac, but the company could previously have been described as a music company. Between iTunes, Apple Music, and of course, the iconic iPod and then iPod touch, the company has been involved in audio for decades. Now, one of the people responsible for some of its audio products and features is set to leave the company.

That man, Gary Geaves, was the company's longtime vice president in charge of acoustics, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Now, people familiar with the matter, say that he is stepping down from the role and that he will be replaced by his deputy, Ruchir Davé.

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The group that handles Apple's acoustics projects has around 300 people in it, the report says, and it's part of the company's push into audio products via the HomePod and AirPods. It also has its fingers in other products via their audio features including the new Apple Vision Pro.

While Apple is yet to confirm the news externally, the company's executives reportedly announced the leadership changes internally last week.

The news comes as Apple is rumored to be working on new AirPods and AirPods Max products, both sporting USB-C ports rather than Lightning for the first time. The new audio products are both expected to debut later this year, although concrete details are hard to come by currently. The AirPods Max specifically seem set to be little more than a slight refresh with the new charging port and different colors expected to be the highlights.