In an interview with news website Axios, Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook has predicted that new regulations on technology companies and social networks to protect personal data is now "inevitable".

Cook said he expected the United States Congress to take up the matter at the earliest.

“Generally speaking, I am not a big fan of regulation," Cook said in the interview. "I'm a big believer in the free market. But we have to admit when the free market is not working. And it hasn't worked here. I think it's inevitable that there will be some level of regulation," Cook added. "I think the Congress and the administration at some point will pass something."

Cook admitted that despite surging revenue and profits, Silicon Valley is in a newly humbled posture after a year of rising global scepticism.

Cook also argued that tech companies should embrace the coming regulations. "This is not a matter of privacy versus profits, or privacy versus technical innovation. That's a false choice.”

While acknowledging the Silicon Valley's male-dominated innovation culture, Cook said that tech generally has been strong on diversity, and that he is optimistic that there will be marked improvement over time.

“I agree 100 percent from a gender point of view that the Valley has missed it, and tech in general has missed it," he said.