Apple CEO Tim Cook Visits Austin Campus, Talks Beats, iWatch And Hiring Practices

Apple CEO Tim Cook gave a few more hints about what's coming from the tech titan during his visit to the company's newly completed Austin, Texas, campus Thursday. Accompanied by Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue, who currently oversees iTunes store, the App Store, and the chatty Siri, Cook shared insights on a range of topics from the long-rumored iWatch to recent hires.

Cook and Cue delved into the company's recent $3 billion acquisition of Beats Electronics, the premium headphone maker and streaming music service. It was recently announced that Cue will be in charge of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, the music moguls who built Beats and bring a needed dose of "cool" to Apple. Cook also spoke about why Angela Ahrendts was the best choice for Apple’s svp of Retail and Online Stores. Ahrendts is the former CEO of the fashion company Burberry.

As at several other recent appearances, Cook and Cue hinted at the long-rumored iWatch and other "exciting" upcoming products. Last week at the first annual Code Conference held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, Cue teased the fall lineup by saying, “We’ve got the best product pipeline that I’ve seen in my 25 years at Apple.”

The new state-of-the-art facility will serve as Apple’s operations center in the U.S. While Apple’s Austin campus is fully operational, all the construction won't be completed until 2021.

Update: It appears that Cook is going for that man-about-town look. The CEO has tweeted a couple of pictures, one of him visiting the AppleCare team in Austin and one of his visit to Apple’s Mac Pro manufacturing plant, a facility an hour outside Austin run by a separate company called Flextronics.