Apple CEO Tim Cook joins Twitter amid iPhone launch frenzy

Tim Cook at the Apple Store in Palo Alto, Calif.(Credit: James Martin/CNET)
Apple's top exec has not only joined Twitter, but is already using it, posting about his trip to an Apple store earlier Friday.
Apple's CEO Tim Cook has joined Twitter.

Using an account with the name of @Tim_Cook, which is currently unverified by Twitter, Cook posted the following tweet just after noon Pacific, noting that he enjoyed his visit at Apple's retail store in Palo Alto, Calif. -- near Apple's headquarters:

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation that the executive had joined the popular social service, though CNBC is reporting that it's the real deal.

Cook appeared at the company's Palo Alto, store earlier today to partake in the company's launch festivities. That store, which was remodeled last year, has been host to several other appearances by Apple execs, including late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, as well as Scott Forstall, who was in charge of iOS software up until last October.

Cook is the latest Apple exec to join Twitter. Apple's marketing chief Phil Schiller has used the popular microblogging service since 2008, and posts things there semi-regularly. Schiller's also used the platform to take cracks at competitors, notably Google and the security of its Android platform with a single tweet this past March that pointed to an F-Secure Labs quarterly Mobile Threat report. There as also Forstall, who joined and amassed more than 59,000 followers, but has never tweeted.

It's unclear whether Cook intends to use Twitter as a way to interact with customers, competitors, the press, or in conjunction with any product details. The executive, who took on the top spot at Apple in August 2011, already had a penchant for replying to customer e-mails, many of which have been posted publicly.