That Steve Jobs was a titan among tech visionaries of his day remains an uncontested fact. What is somewhat aberrant, however, is his larger-than-life persona that still retains immense sway within Apple's evolving corporate heft. And, had he managed to survive his joust with cancer back in 2011, Steve Jobs would have turned 71 today.
Steve Jobs and Apple are synonymous with each other
It is common knowledge that Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak started Apple in a garage in 1976. However, by 1985, Jobs was in a precarious position within Apple, courtesy of one of his own hires: the ex-CEO of PepsiCo, John Sculley. At the time, Sculley and Jobs were locked in a bruising one-upmanship over two of Apple's products, the Lisa and Macintosh, and their lethargic sales performance. Sculley ultimately prevailed, however, and Jobs was removed from his beloved Macintosh division.
Brimming with self-righteous ire and ignominy, Steve Jobs took his case to Apple's board, where he reportedly delivered a scathing rant, ruffling many feathers in the process. What followed remains a point of contention: Steve Jobs maintained that he was fired by the board shortly thereafter, while Sculley asserted that Apple's co-founder quit of his own volition.
Jobs went on to found NeXT, a high-end computer manufacturer. However, by 1996, NeXT was struggling after failing to sell itself to a competent bidder. Eventually, Apple acquired Steve Jobs' company, bringing him back into the fold, so to say. The date was legendary: September 16.
Lady Luck, however, had one last trick up her sleeve. After Apple's then-CEO, Gil Amelio, tanked the company's stock price with a hefty stock liquidation spree, the board replaced him with Steve Jobs, allowing his vision to unfold over the next decade, culminating in the launch of the iconic iPhone in 2007.
Jobs' legacy and its impact on Apple
Some say that Tim Cook has always lived under Steve Jobs' shadow, which inculcated a fear of failure within Apple's incumbent CEO. This line of thought provides one lens for viewing Apple's now-characteristic transition from a tech innovator under Jobs to a tech perfector under Cook.
At any rate, given Steve Jobs' larger-than-life persona within Apple's corporate lore, his phantom would likely remain with us as long as the Cupertino tech giant remains a force to be reckoned with.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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