The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that after years of speculation, we finally have found out that Warren Buffett will be stepping down as chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of this year. Guest columnist George Athanassakos says, however, Mr. Buffett had already retired from day-to-day operations and had largely left investment decisions to his successor, Greg Abel, and his team a long time ago. Berkshire's relatively recent investment in Apple did not appear to be Buffett-type investments. Mr. Buffett has repeatedly said that he does not understand technology. Even if he did, Mr. Buffett likes to invest in companies that possess a sustainable competitive advantage. Apple does not really fit this mould. Mr. Athanassakos says that for him, the competitive advantage for Apple had been Steve Jobs. Transition planning was not one of Apple's strong suits when Mr. Jobs was around, in part because of the outsized and difficult-to-replicate contributions he had made. Can Apple continue to be in the forefront of technology and innovation without Mr. Jobs? Some would doubt this, and in recent years, there has been a growing perception that the company is not innovating nearly fast enough.