Following the announcement of Pope Francis’ death at 88 this Easter Monday, Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, was among the authorities who honored the late pontiff.
In a post on X, Tim Cook wrote: “Joining people around the world in mourning Pope Francis today. He lived a life of extraordinary grace and deep compassion. May he rest in peace.”
While Apple’s CEO usually makes a statement when there’s a tragedy or when someone influential passes, it’s notable to see Cook express his mourning for Pope Francis.
During his 12 years as pope, Pope Francis and Tim Cook met once in 2022. The pontiff, who often advocated for limiting smartphone use in favor of personal communication, held a private audience with Tim Cook in October of that year.
Joining people around the world in mourning Pope Francis today. He lived a life of extraordinary grace and deep compassion. May he rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/JDSOGe9z3j
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 21, 2025
While it’s unclear what the pontiff and Cook discussed, Pope Francis had long warned about people becoming “slaves” to their mobile phones. In 2019, he told young people, “Free yourself from the addiction to mobile phones. When you become a slave to your mobile phone, you lose your freedom.”
Though there may seem to be a considerable gap between a religious leader and the CEO of the world’s most valuable company, Tim Cook and Pope Francis shared similar concerns about the environment. In 2015, the Pope published Laudato Si’, an encyclical on the impact of climate change on the world’s poorest. He stated, “We are faced not with two separate crises, one environmental and the other social. But rather with one complex crisis, which is both social and environmental.”
Apple, which is also part of the environmental problem, has committed to becoming a carbon-neutral company by 2030. After this announcement, several other tech companies followed suit. Cupertino has also been at the forefront of giving a voice to underrepresented communities, teaching young people how to code, and, in some ways, creating tools to help parents impose limits on their children’s internet usage.
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