Apple's Tim Cook & Jeff Williams make Time 'Most Influential People in Tech' list

Time Magazine on Tuesday posted its "20 Most Influential People in Tech" list for 2017, including Apple CEO Tim Cook and his COO, Jeff Williams.

Cook is ranked fourth on the list, and said to have "nearly unmatched influence over the technology world," since Apple is "copied by a seemingly endless number of rivals." Time also pointed to the potential impact of the company's secret projects, including self-driving cars and augmented reality.

Williams is in 17th, described as Cook's "second in command" and "Tim Cook's Tim Cook," since Cook was himself COO before taking over the CEO role from Steve Jobs. Time noted that Williams been handling Apple's supply chain since 2010, and oversaw development of the Apple Watch, "a sign he's closely involved with new projects."

The top three positions on the list are held by Tesla/SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

While Apple has become even more successful under Cook than it was under Jobs, some critics have worried that the company is losing its edge. iPhone sales have declined in a few recent quarters, and while the Apple Watch is thought to be reasonably popular, it hasn't been a breakout product like iPhones or iPads. The company's AI assistant, Siri, is typically considered weak next to Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.

Much may be hinging on the "iPhone 8," expected to launch later this year. It's expected to introduce a number of changes, including a 5.8-inch OLED screen, a virtual home button, wireless charging, and 3D facial recognition/iris scanning.