Fast Company:

This seems to have been the keynote where Apple finally gave up on the idea that its CEO must be the center of the presentation. This is surely a relief to Cook, who never wanted to be as much of a showman as his predecessor, Steve Jobs. Instead of having to anchor everything, Cook bookended a set of surprising presentations by a surprisingly diverse array of executives. There were, of course, the traditional “white techie guys in Silicon Valley garb,” all interchangeable on stage except for Craig Federighi, SVP of software engineering, who has real stage presence. But there was also some racial diversity, there was some female representation, and even—gasp!—an African-American woman, Bozoma Saint John, who was a big, bright moment of energy on the stage.

None of this would be noteworthy, of course, outside of Silicon Valley. But coming from Apple, it was noteworthy indeed. Cook doesn’t sweat the details of a keynote the way Jobs did—no one did, or should—but he is ensuring that Apple projects the diversity he has championed over the years.

I noticed the change as well. Cook bookended the keynote and didn’t appear in the middle. And that’s not a bad thing. For me, it’s always been about what is being presented. I pay little attention to who is doing the presenting.