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Apple chief Tim Cook to deliver MIT's 2017 commencement speech

Cook will likely be speaking to a few future employees during his speech.
Written by Jake Smith, Contributor
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Jason Cipriani/ZDNet

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), one of the top technology and engineering schools in the world, has tapped Apple CEO Tim Cook to deliver its 2017 commencement address.

While Cook never attended MIT, the research university said Cook's advocacy and role in business as the leader of the world's largest company by market cap will resonate with students at June's graduation.

"Mr. Cook's brilliance as a business leader, his genuineness as a human being, and his passion for issues that matter to our community make his voice one that I know will resonate deeply with our graduates," MIT President L. Rafael Reif said in a statement. "I am delighted that he will join us for Commencement and eagerly await his charge to the Class of 2017."

MIT's 2017 commencement is Friday, June 9. Past commencement addresses were given by US Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith in 2015, Dropbox co-founder and CEO Drew Houston in 2013, and and Khan Academy founder Sal Khan.

"Apple stands at the intersection of liberal arts and technology, and we're proud to have many outstanding MIT graduates on our team," Cook said in a statement. "We believe deeply that technology can be a powerful force for good, and I'm looking forward to speaking to the Class of 2017 as they look ahead to making their own mark on the world."

See also: Tim Cook, Larry Page, other top leaders to attend Trump's tech meeting

Cook earned a BS in industrial engineering from Auburn University in 1982, and an MBA from Duke University in 1988.

Cook gave a commencement speech at Auburn in 2011, when he was COO at Apple.

The top employers for bachelor's degree recipients from MIT's 2016 graduating class were Google, Oracle, Amazon, McKinsey, Accenture, Apple, Boeing, Microsoft, ExxonMobil, General Motors, Boston Consulting Group, Morgan Stanley, Booz Allen Hamilton, Goldman Sachs, and SpaceX.

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