Steve Jobs
Born 1955 · Age 70
Co-founder and CEO of Apple Inc., founder of NeXT, majority shareholder and chairman of Pixar, pioneer of the personal computer and consumer electronics revolutions.
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Life & Career Timeline
Adoption by Paul and Clara Jobs
Adopted shortly after birth by Paul and Clara Jobs and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Birth
Born in San Francisco to Joanne Schieble and Abdulfattah Jandali; placed for adoption and given to Paul and Clara Jobs.
Family moves to Mountain View (Silicon Valley)
Jobs family moved from San Francisco to Mountain View in Santa Clara County (area later known as Silicon Valley).
Summer internship at Hewlett-Packard
At age 13 Jobs cold-called Bill Hewlett, obtained parts and a summer job at HP.
Meets Steve Wozniak
Met Steve Wozniak through a mutual friend; they bonded over electronics and pranks — future Apple partnership began.
Builds and sells 'blue boxes' with Wozniak
Jobs and Wozniak designed and sold phone phreaking 'blue boxes' that allowed free long-distance calls; early entrepreneurial experience.
Enrolls at Reed College; drops out
Enrolled at Reed College (Portland, OR) in 1972 and dropped out after one semester; continued auditing classes (notably calligraphy).
Joins Atari as technician
Took a job at video game maker Atari; later that year traveled to India seeking spiritual enlightenment.
Trip to India; Zen Buddhism interest
Traveled through India in mid-1974 searching for enlightenment; later embraced Zen Buddhism and meditation practices.
Apple I production/sales
Jobs and Wozniak assembled Apple I units in Jobs' garage; sold 50 units to Byte Shop at $500 each (early revenue and customer traction).
Apple I shown at Homebrew Computer Club
Wozniak completed Apple I design; Jobs suggested selling it; early prototype shown at Homebrew Computer Club.
Incorporates Apple Computer (founding)
Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne incorporated Apple Computer in Jobs's parents' garage; Wayne left shortly after.
Mike Markkula investment and hiring of Mike Scott
Former Intel marketer Mike Markkula invested in Apple and recruited Mike Scott as Apple's first CEO; Woz left HP to join Apple full-time.
Apple II public debut at West Coast Computer Faire
Apple made a major splash with the Apple II prototype — a key product that became one of the first mass-market personal computers.
Apple II achieves mass-market success
Apple II becomes a commercial hit and symbol of the personal computer revolution; company begins work on Apple III and Lisa.
Birth of daughter Lisa
Chrisann Brennan gave birth to Lisa; Jobs initially refused to acknowledge paternity and there was later legal dispute.
Visits Xerox PARC; inspired by GUI and mouse
Jobs saw graphical user interface and mouse-driven systems at Xerox PARC, influencing Lisa and Macintosh development.
Apple III launch (commercial failure)
Apple launched the Apple III in 1980; the product suffered reliability and market problems.
Apple goes public (IPO)
Apple's 1980 IPO created many millionaires and increased Jobs' net worth into the hundreds of millions.
Launch of Lisa
Apple formally launched Lisa — an early GUI machine that eventually merged with the Macintosh project.
John Sculley becomes Apple CEO
Steve convinced Pepsi executive John Sculley to join Apple as CEO; later Sculley and Jobs clashed over company direction.
Macintosh launched
Macintosh launched with a GUI and iconic '1984' ad; first mass-market computer with a graphical user interface.
30th birthday celebration
Jobs celebrated his 30th birthday with Ella Fitzgerald as a guest singer.
Stripped of executive duties
Apple board sided with John Sculley and removed many of Jobs' executive responsibilities after internal power struggles.
Resigns from Apple and founds NeXT
Jobs resigned from Apple, sold most Apple shares (reportedly retaining one), invested proceeds (reportedly ~$70M) in founding NeXT to build computers for higher education.
Acquires Lucasfilm graphics division → Pixar
Bought the Lucasfilm computer graphics division for approximately $10 million and incorporated it as Pixar.
Pixar unveils Luxo Jr. at SIGGRAPH
Pixar's short Luxo Jr. debuted at SIGGRAPH and received critical praise as an early computer-animated work of art.
Ross Perot invests $20M in NeXT
Ross Perot invested $20 million into NeXT (reported $125M valuation at the time) to fund development of NeXT computers.
Unveils NeXT Cube
Jobs introduced the NeXT Cube workstation to critical acclaim; targeted at higher education and research institutions.
Tin Toy released; wins Academy Award
Pixar released the short Tin Toy at SIGGRAPH; it later won the 1988 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
Canon invests $100M in NeXT
Canon invested $100 million in NeXT, valuing the company at about $600 million.
Introduces NeXTstation (cheaper NeXT hardware)
Jobs introduced the more affordable NeXTstation to stimulate sales of NeXT hardware.
Major Pixar restructuring
Jobs fired roughly half of Pixar's staff and took back employee stock to cut costs as the company remained unprofitable.
Marries Laurene Powell
Jobs married Laurene Powell in Yosemite; she was pregnant at the time.
Pixar signs deal with Disney for feature films
Pixar signed a multi-film production and distribution deal with Disney to produce computer-animated feature films (eventually Toy Story).
Birth of son Reed Paul Jobs
Laurene Powell gave birth to their son Reed Paul Jobs (Sept 22, 1991).
NeXT licenses NeXTSTEP to x86
NeXT licensed its operating system, NeXTSTEP, to run on Intel x86 machines — a software pivot for the company.
NeXT discontinues hardware; fires 300
NeXT discontinued hardware operations and refocused on software (NeXT Software Inc.), eliminating ~300 jobs.
Death of adoptive father Paul Jobs
Paul Jobs, Steve's adoptive father, passed away.
Pixar resumes Toy Story development
After earlier setbacks, Pixar resumed development of Toy Story which would be released in 1995.
Jobs shifts focus to Pixar; becomes President & CEO
Jobs increasingly focused on Pixar; he became Pixar's President & CEO as Toy Story approached release.
Birth of daughter Erin Siena Jobs
Laurene gave birth to Erin Siena Jobs (Aug 19, 1995).
Pixar IPO
Pixar went public one week after Toy Story's release; the IPO made Jobs a billionaire (reported increase to ~$1.5B).
Apple acquires NeXT; Jobs returns to Apple
Apple purchased NeXT (reported $400–429M) to acquire its operating system; Jobs became an advisor to Apple CEO Gil Amelio.
Named interim CEO of Apple
After Gil Amelio's ouster, Jobs was named interim CEO and began installing his NeXT team at Apple, initiating a company turnaround.
Macworld: Announces Apple board changes; Microsoft truce
At Macworld Boston Jobs introduced Apple's new board of directors and announced a partnership/truce with Microsoft (including investment).
Think Different campaign
Apple started the 'Think Different' advertising campaign to revive the brand and emphasize innovation and design.
Declares Apple profitable again
At Macworld Jobs announced Apple was profitable again, citing sales of new Power Macintosh models and cost cuts.
Introduces the iMac
Jobs introduced the iMac (colorful all-in-one computer) at the Flint Center; it was a major commercial success and helped revive Apple's fortunes.
Introduces Power Mac G3 & color iMacs
At Macworld San Francisco Jobs introduced the Power Mac G3 and new color iMacs, continuing product momentum.
iBook unveiled
Unveiled the original iBook at Macworld New York, marketed as 'iMac to go'.
Becomes permanent Apple CEO
At Macworld San Francisco Jobs dropped the 'interim' title and formally became Apple's CEO; adopted a $1 annual salary.
Announces Apple's 'Digital Hub' strategy
Jobs outlined Apple's 'Digital Hub' strategy positioning the Mac as the center of users' digital lives.
Mac OS X 10.0 ships (based on NeXT technology)
Mac OS X 10.0 (Cheetah) shipped after years of work, built on NeXTSTEP foundations — major platform milestone.
Apple opens first Retail Stores
Apple opened its initial retail stores (Tysons Corner, VA and Glendale, CA), pioneering Apple's direct retail strategy.
Introduces the iPod
After an 8-month development push, Jobs unveiled the iPod portable music player — a product that transformed Apple into a consumer-electronics leader.
Launches iTunes Music Store (US)
Apple opened the iTunes Music Store in the U.S. after landmark deals with music labels — a new digital music distribution model.
Diagnosed with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor
Jobs was diagnosed with a rare neuroendocrine tumor of the pancreas; he initially pursued alternative therapies before surgery.
Undergoes surgery to remove pancreatic tumor
Jobs had surgery (Whipple procedure) to remove the tumor; returned to work later in 2004.
Announces Intel transition for Macs
At WWDC Jobs announced Apple's shift from PowerPC to Intel processors — a strategic hardware/OS transition.
Stanford commencement speech ('Stay hungry, stay foolish')
Delivered the now-famous commencement address at Stanford University advising graduates to follow their passions.
Disney acquires Pixar for $7.4B; Jobs becomes Disney board member
Disney bought Pixar for $7.4 billion; Jobs became Disney's largest individual shareholder and joined its board.
Introduces iPhone; Apple renames to Apple Inc.
At Macworld 2007 Jobs introduced the iPhone and Apple dropped 'Computer' from its corporate name to become Apple Inc.
iPhone released in the US
The first-generation iPhone went on sale in the U.S.; the product would revolutionize mobile computing and drive Apple's growth.
Inducted into California Hall of Fame
Jobs was inducted into the California Hall of Fame by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Introduces MacBook Air and App Store (iTunes update)
At Macworld Jobs introduced the MacBook Air; Apple also moved to open the iPhone platform to third-party developers and the App Store concept began.
Takes six-month medical leave; later receives liver transplant
Announced a six-month medical leave in Jan 2009; in April 2009 Jobs received a liver transplant in Memphis.
Introduces the iPad
Jobs unveiled the iPad, positioning it as a new post-PC category; Apple sold 500,000 in first week.
Beatles catalog added to iTunes
Jobs negotiated Beatles album availability on iTunes, a high-profile content deal.
Announces medical leave of absence (no end date)
Jobs announced a medical leave in January 2011 and delegated day-to-day operations to Tim Cook.
Surprise appearance: unveils iPad 2
Despite medical leave, Jobs made a surprise appearance to introduce the iPad 2 in March 2011.
Last keynote: unveils iCloud at WWDC
At WWDC 2011 Jobs gave his final keynote, unveiling iCloud — a central cloud strategy for Apple products.
Last public appearance (Apple campus plan)
Made final public appearance at Cupertino City Council to present plans for Apple’s circular 'Spaceship' campus (Apple Park).
Resigns as Apple CEO
Jobs resigned as CEO of Apple citing inability to meet duties; Tim Cook became CEO and Jobs became chairman.
Death
Steve Jobs died at home in Palo Alto from respiratory arrest related to his pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor.
Private memorial service at Stanford
A private service was held at Stanford Memorial Church attended by family, friends and industry peers.
Walter Isaacson biography published
Authorized biography 'Steve Jobs' by Walter Isaacson published (Isaacson interviewed Jobs extensively before his death).
Posthumous patent count reported
By some counts Jobs was credited on many patents overall; since death he had been awarded numerous patents (reports vary: Jobs holds over 450 patents in total; posthumously 141 granted after death reported).
Posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom
Steve Jobs was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.
Key Achievement Ages
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