Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011) was an American entrepreneur, industrial designer, and business magnate who co-founded Apple Inc. and became one of the most influential figures in the history of consumer technology.^[1] As Apple's driving force, he helped introduce a succession of products - among them the Macintosh, iMac, iPod, iPhone, and iPad - that reshaped personal computing, music, and mobile communication.

Early life and education

Steven Paul Jobs was born on February 24, 1955, in San Francisco and was adopted as an infant, growing up in the Santa Clara Valley area that later became known as Silicon Valley. He attended Homestead High School and, in 1972, enrolled at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. He withdrew after a single semester but continued to audit courses, including a calligraphy class he later credited as an influence on the typography of the Macintosh.^[1] He also studied at De Anza College.

Founding of Apple

In 1976 Jobs co-founded Apple with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne, bringing to market the Apple I and then the Apple II, one of the first highly successful mass-produced personal computers. In 1984 the company released the Macintosh, an early consumer computer built around a graphical user interface and mouse. After internal disputes over the company's direction, Jobs left Apple in 1985.

NeXT and Pixar

Following his departure, Jobs founded the computer company NeXT and acquired the computer graphics division of Lucasfilm, which he built into Pixar. Under his ownership Pixar produced Toy Story (1995), the first feature-length film animated entirely with computer graphics, with Jobs serving as an executive producer. The studio's success established him as a significant figure in the entertainment industry, and Pixar later merged with the Walt Disney Company.

Return to Apple

Apple acquired NeXT in 1997, returning Jobs to the struggling company, where he eventually became chief executive. He oversaw a turnaround built on products including the iMac (1998), iPod (2001), the iTunes Store, iPhone (2007), and iPad (2010), together with Apple's retail stores. His emphasis on minimalist design, ease of use, and tight integration of hardware and software helped make Apple one of the world's most valuable companies.^[2]

Legacy

Jobs received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in 1985 and was later recognized with honors including the Grammy Trustees Award and induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.^[2] He resigned as Apple's chief executive in August 2011 amid declining health and died of complications from a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor on October 5, 2011, in Palo Alto, California. Widely regarded as a pioneer of the personal computer and smartphone eras, he remains a frequently studied figure for his approach to product design and marketing.