Steve Jobs, revered visionary and
co-founder of Apple Inc.,
was so much more than an ingenious and forward-thinking innovator – he was a
true pioneer of the all-consuming ‘Age of Technology’.
From
humble beginnings in his family garage in 1976, the late Steve Jobs and his good
friend Steve Wozniak
first conceptualised Apple Computers with the idea that they could create and
produce a user-friendly personal computer that was compact and affordable.
Regarding the name Apple, Jobs
tells the story that he was inspired
by one of his ‘fruitarian diets’ He had just arrived back from a jaunt on
an apple farm and thought the name sounded ‘fun, spirited and not intimidating.’
Today that simple word is synonymous with a global power house that continues
to pave the way for intuitive new technologies and innovations that inspire and
change the modern world we live in.
Originally marketed for $666.66 a
pop, the first release of Apple Computers earned the newly formed corporation
around $774K USD. Three years later, sales of the second release increased revenue
by 700% - amounting to a whopping $139 million.
In 1980, Apple Computer became a
publicly traded company, with a market value of $1.2 billion by the end of its
very first day of trading. Today Apple dominates the US stock market and boasts
a market cap of $608 Billion USD, but as most would be aware – Steve Jobs was an
intense and complicated character and his journey to success was nothing short
of eventful.
Steve Jobs, started life being
given up for adoption by two university sweethearts who went on to later marry
and have more children. Interestingly the young Jobs was raised in an area
named Mountain View, California – well within the area now known as Silicon
Valley.
As a boy, Steve’s adoptive father
showed him how to deconstruct and re-assemble electronics – a hobby that
fascinated the young Jobs and tapped into his natural talent for mechanics.
Steve was always innovative and intelligent but never flourished within the
formal school environment and was often bored and disruptive.
In
1971 Jobs was introduced to Steve Wozniak through a mutual friend who said they
would get along due to their mutual interest in electronics and pranking! The
perfect partnership was formed and to this day, Jobs and Wozniak are credited
with revolutionizing the computer industry by making the machines smaller,
cheaper, more intuitive and easily accessible to everyday consumers.
While the first two series of the
Apple computer were considered an out-of-the-gate success, the next few product
releases had significant design flaws and resulted in recalls and much consumer
disappointment.
During this time IBM moved into
the PC space and quickly surpassed Apple in terms of sales and infiltration of
the business market. Despite positive sales and performance of the 1984
released Macintosh computer some members of the board believed
Jobs decisions were hurting Apple. They formed a plan to phase him out
which resulted in Jobs exiting Apple in 1985.
Jobs began a new hardware and
software enterprise called NeXT
Inc, and purchased an animation company, now known as Pixar. Seeing the huge potential in movie
animation Jobs invested $50 million of his own money into Pixar, which went on
to produce hugely popular movies like Toy Story, Finding
Nemo and The Incredibles. When Pixar merged with Walt Disney in 2006, it subsequently
made Jobs Disney's largest shareholder.
Apple floundered without Jobs involvement and Apple
Inc. share prices were seriously underwhelming. In 1997 he was wooed back to
Apple and appointed as CEO and with his renewed involvement and focus on the
company stock values rose significantly and have continued to grow since. Once safely back at the helm Steve revitalised the company with ingenious products like the iMac – where he utilised effective brand campaigns and stylish designs which caught the attention of consumers once again.
With Jobs in charge, Apple introduced revolutionary products and services such as the Macbook Air, iPod, iPhone, iPad, iTunes - all of which have gone on to dictate the evolution of modern technology.
Watch this video where Steve Jobs
introduces the very first iPhone. Even now competitors scramble to replicate comparable
technologies as soon as Apple releases a new product.
Sadly, Steve Jobs passed away at
the age of 56 after succumbing to a ten-year battle with pancreatic cancer, but
in his wake he left more than a just a legacy solidified in history – he left
behind a world forever changed by his technological concepts and innovations.
AMMA Private Equity is a boutique private equity company based in Australia. They exclusively connect tech start-up businesses with an extensive Accountant network in order to raise capital.
AMMA Private Equity is a boutique private equity company based in Australia. They exclusively connect tech start-up businesses with an extensive Accountant network in order to raise capital.
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