Eddy Cue

While Eddy Cue doesn't interface with the public as much as other executives like Phil Schiller or Craig Federighi, he plays a massive role at the Cupertino-based tech company.

As senior vice president of Services, Cue is responsible for many of the services that have become synonymous with the tech giant, like Apple Music, Maps and iCloud. Apple services continues to be a significant factor in Apple's financial success, and a major topic in Apple's quarterly earnings calls.

Eddy Cue's position at Apple

A graduate Duke University, Cue joined Apple in 1989. He was responsible for setting up the original Apple online store and was instrumental in the development of iTunes and later, the App Store.

While he started as a software engineer, Cue quickly moved into management positions, software engineering and customer support teams. Eventually, he worked his way up to become Apple's Senior Vice President of Services.

Eddy Cue showing off Apple Music during WWDC 2015

In his current role, he oversees a wide array of Apple's services, including Apple Music, Apple News, Apple Podcasts, the Apple TV app, and Apple TV+, as well as Apple Pay, Apple Card, Maps, Search Ads, iCloud services, and productivity and creativity apps.

Many of his responsibilities focus on behind-the-scenes aspects of Apple that may go unnoticed by most users, such as search ads and iCloud syncing. Cue also handles negotiations with external companies for services like Apple Music, Apple TV+, and Apple News+.

In September 2018, concerns over Cue's work-life balance were made public after it was reported that he was falling asleep around the office. Allegedly, he so overextended that during meetings, he would "fall silent, shut his eyes, and tilt his head back." 

Although Cue is not solely responsible for all the engineering work on the projects he oversees, his extensive range of responsibilities would strain anyone, even in a purely managerial role.

Eddy Cue leads the team behind Apple's streaming service, Apple TV+

The same report that accused him of being overextended also criticized his management style with the teams under his charge. Differences in team sizes and overlapping areas of work naturally lead to tensions among creative people.

Due to his heavy workload overseeing multiple projects, Cue has reportedly "failed to intercede in conflicts [at] important moments."

The exact organization of Apple's workload and whether they took any steps to address Cue's workload remain unknown.

Recent months have brought significant changes in the way Apple's executives work and their areas of responsibility. While it does not directly reveal anything about Cue's overall workload, it has been reported that he has focused most of his software engineering teams on Apple TV+.

Eddy Cue's public appearances

Despite being one of Apple's top executives, Cue prefers to be out of the spotlight. He has made fewer appearances during keynotes and rarely participates in public interviews. His Twitter account went silent in 2019, just before the launch of Apple TV+.

Cue is the mastermind behind many of Apple's services initiatives. He has been present to unveil each new product, such as Apple Music and Apple TV+, but otherwise, he prefers to work behind the scenes without seeking the same level of attention as Tim Cook or Craig Federighi.

South by Southwest 2018

One of his most surprising appearances was at South by Southwest where he was interviewed by CNN. This occurred in 2018 just after Apple's acquisition of magazine subscription service Texture, and well before Apple's entry into the entertainment market.

Eddy Cue appearing at South by Southwest in 2018

When asked about free speech issues surrounding news aggregators like Facebook and Twitter, Cue responded positively.

"We want the best articles," Cue said when describing Apple's plans for Texture. "We want them to look amazing and we want them to be from trusted sources."

The interview turned to free speech, about which Cue said "we think when you have a large platform, there's a large responsibility." He said that Apple had to come up with specific guidelines surrounding issues with speech and being on the platform.

"At times we got some heat for it, people weren't happy that we had guidelines." He continued, "We do think free speech is important, but we don't think white supremacist speech or hate speech is free speech that ought to be out there."

The interview moved to acquisitions and media and Apple's future in providing entertainment services. Eddy Cue went into more detail than expected, describing Apple's goals for a streaming service over a year before its launch.

"We're all in," Cue said. "There's a difference though — we're not after quantity, we're after quality. When you think of content, first of all, and you can see that here at South by Southwest, great storytelling is important."

Duke University speech 2017

During a speaking engagement at Duke University, Eddy Cue shared insights into his life in the technology industry. The university had extended the invitation in connection with the launch and expansion of the Duke Technology Scholars program.

Cue commenced his speech by reflecting on his upbringing as a first-generation child of immigrants, his marriage to Paula, and his experiences as a parent. He then delved into the story of how he ended up choosing Duke and pursuing a career in technology.

Originally aspiring to become an architect, Cue's direction shifted after he began using a computer. This experience ignited in him a passion for technology, and he was determined to pursue a career in this field.

"I haven't worked at Apple for 29 years," he started. "If you do the math, 29 years, and you kinda do the number of days I've worked, I've probably worked about a year. The other 28 years wasn't work, it was just what I love to do."

Eddy Cue speaking at Duke University

Eddy Cue's Life and History at Apple

Eddy Cue was born in 1964 in Florida to a Cuban mother and a Spanish father. He is married to his wife Paula and has two sons and a daughter.

Cue holds a Bachelor's degree in computer science and economics from Duke University. His sons also graduated from Duke, and today he is a big fan of Duke basketball. Additionally, Cue is a fan of the Golden State Warriors and can often be seen sitting courtside.

Eddy Cue, seen at a Golden State Warriors game. Image credit: The Chronicle

He was first noticed by Steve Jobs, or at least brought to his attention. Cue joined Apple in 1989, initially working in customer support. He later managed the customer support team and also worked in software engineering before Jobs returned in 1997.

Jobs assigned him to work on Apple's online store, which first appeared in 1998. This was followed by the iTunes Store in 2003 and the first version of the App Store in 2008.

When MobileMe failed, Jobs sought Cue's help, and the service eventually transitioned to iCloud, which since has become a crucial part of Apple's infrastructure.

Steve Jobs had Eddy Cue negotiate the initial iPhone deal with AT&T, which helped avoid certain requirements like pre-loaded carrier apps, physical carrier branding on the iPhone, and a carrier bootup animation, all of which are common features on most Android phones to this day.

Despite this, Jobs never fully promoted Cue to the executive status at Apple. However, during his first year as CEO, Tim Cook did.

Cook gave Cue a similar task to improve Apple Maps and also handed him responsibility for Siri.

While Apple Maps has definitely improved, Siri has generally lagged behind its competitors in terms of abilities and, perhaps more importantly, in its perceived abilities. In 2017, Apple moved Siri over to Craig Federighi.

That may be a recognition of Siri's failings, but it could also be because, around then, Cue would have been increasingly involved in the negotiations over Apple News+ and Apple TV+.

Today, Eddy Cue appears to be chiefly focused on the TV service. That's one which is likely to always need negotiations, as it's dealing with individual talent rather than, say, a handful of record labels. He hasn't made any major keynote presentations in recent years.