Despite rumours that a merger is in the works, Apple chief executive Tim Cook believes mobile devices and desktop computers should remain in separate worlds with their own bespoke operating systems.

Following a recent Apple event in Chicago, where the tech giant outlined its plans for a renewed push into the education sector, I had the opportunity to briefly talk with Cook.

As we set up, I mentioned the first computer I’d used back in primary school was an Apple IIc, and that technology had certainly come a long way since then. Down the hall, students were racing drones, playing virtual instruments, and dissecting augmented reality frogs on Apple’s latest mobile devices.

Cook tells me the Apple IIc was his first computer, too. "I first used it for a project, as a senior in engineering school, making an inventory control program or for a rental business that was close by." Prophetic, for the man in charge of Apple’s supply chain for so many years.

Cook speaks slowly and deliberately, as one would expect of the CEO of the most profitable company on the planet. It is not just the sharemarket that makes him tread carefully, he must also feel the weight of countless Mac pundits who interpret his every word for clues about the future leanings of the famously secretive company.