Steve Jobs - Co-Founder of Apple and Pioneer of Personal Computing

Steven Paul Jobs is born to Joanne Carole Schieble and Abdulfattah Jandali (a Syrian immigrant). He is adopted by Paul Reinhold Jobs, a machinist, and Clara Jobs, a bookkeeper. They raise him in Mountain View, California, in the heart of what will become Silicon Valley.

At age 13, Jobs cold-calls Bill Hewlett, co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, to ask for parts for a frequency counter he is building. Hewlett is impressed and gives Jobs a summer job on an assembly line. This early exposure to Silicon Valley's engineering culture profoundly shapes Jobs.

Jobs graduates from Homestead High School in Cupertino, California, where he had developed dual interests in electronics and counterculture literature. He enrolls at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, an expensive liberal arts school that strains his adoptive parents' finances.

After one semester, Jobs drops out of Reed College but continues auditing classes, including a calligraphy course later reflected in the Mac's typography. He works at Atari as a technician, saving money, then travels through India seeking spiritual enlightenment. He returns as a Zen Buddhist with a shaved head and Indian clothing.

Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne co-found Apple Computer Company in Jobs's parents' garage. Wozniak designs the Apple I, a single-board computer. Jobs insists on selling it as a fully assembled circuit board. Wayne sells his share after 12 days for $800.

The Apple II is introduced at the West Coast Computer Faire. It features a plastic case, color graphics, and an internal floppy drive. The Apple II becomes one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputers and makes Apple a major force in the emerging personal computer industry.

In exchange for allowing Xerox to invest in Apple, Jobs gains access to Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). He sees the graphical user interface, mouse, and object-oriented programming. Jobs later says, "They just had no idea what they had." Apple licenses and dramatically improves these concepts for its computers.

Apple goes public at $22 per share, the largest IPO since Ford in 1956. The IPO instantly creates more millionaires (about 300) than any company in history. Jobs, 25 years old, is worth approximately $256 million.

Jobs unveils the Macintosh at Apple's annual shareholder meeting, introduced by the iconic "1984" Super Bowl commercial directed by Ridley Scott. The Macintosh is the first mass-market personal computer with a graphical user interface, though its limited memory and lack of software initially hurt sales.

Jobs founds NeXT Inc. with several former Apple employees. The company builds high-end workstation computers for the education and business markets. Though commercially unsuccessful, NeXT's technology (the NeXTSTEP operating system) becomes the foundation for Apple's future macOS and iOS.

After a months-long power struggle with CEO John Sculley (whom Jobs had recruited from Pepsi), Jobs is effectively fired from Apple. He resigns, selling all but one of his Apple shares. The trauma of being ousted from his own company profoundly affects him but also liberates him to explore new ventures.

Jobs buys the Computer Graphics Division of Lucasfilm for $10 million (investing $5 million of his own money and covering $5 million for George Lucas). He renames it Pixar. The company initially sells hardware (the Pixar Image Computer) but later becomes the world's most successful animation studio.

Jobs marries Laurene Powell, a Stanford MBA student he met while giving a lecture at Stanford Business School. They have three children: Reed, Erin, and Eve. The marriage stabilizes Jobs personally after years of turmoil.

Pixar releases Toy Story, the first fully computer-animated feature film. Directed by John Lasseter, it earns $394 million worldwide and wins the Academy Award for Best Original Score. Pixar goes public on November 29, 1995, making Jobs a billionaire.

Apple acquires NeXT for $429 million, bringing Jobs back to the company he founded. Initially serving as an advisor, Jobs quickly becomes the architect of Apple's turnaround after the board ousts CEO Gil Amelio in July 1997. The NeXTSTEP operating system becomes the foundation for Mac OS X.

Jobs becomes interim CEO (iCEO) of Apple, which is on the verge of bankruptcy. He immediately ends the clone licensing program, kills the Newton PDA, simplifies the product line, and launches the "Think Different" advertising campaign featuring iconic figures like Einstein and Gandhi.

Jobs unveils the iMac, an all-in-one computer with a distinctive translucent Bondi Blue case. Designed by Jony Ive, the iMac becomes Apple's fastest-selling computer in history, selling 800,000 units in its first five months. The iMac saves Apple from bankruptcy and begins the company's remarkable turnaround.

Jobs introduces the iPod with the tagline "1,000 songs in your pocket." The device's scroll wheel, minimalist design, and massive storage capacity revolutionize portable music players. The iPod becomes a cultural phenomenon and transforms Apple from a computer company into a consumer electronics powerhouse.

Jobs launches the iTunes Store, offering individual songs for 99 cents with no subscription. It sells 1 million songs in its first week. The store becomes the world's largest music retailer and destroys the traditional album-based music industry model. Legal digital downloads devastate music piracy.

Jobs is diagnosed with a rare pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor, a less aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. He initially delays surgery for nine months, attempting alternative treatments. He eventually undergoes surgery in July 2004. The health crisis marks the beginning of a long struggle with his illness.

Jobs unveils the iPhone at Macworld San Francisco, calling it "an iPod, a phone, and an internet communicator" in one device. The iPhone's multi-touch screen, App Store ecosystem, and minimalist design redefine the smartphone industry. It becomes Apple's most important product and one of the most successful products in history.

The App Store launches with 500 applications, creating an entirely new software distribution model. Independent developers can create and sell apps directly to iPhone users. By 2011, the App Store passes 10 billion downloads. The platform economy it creates transforms mobile software and spawns entire new industries.

Jobs unveils the iPad, a tablet device between a phone and a laptop. Many initially dismiss it as a "big iPhone," but the iPad creates an entirely new product category that revolutionizes media consumption, education, publishing, and productivity. It sells 3 million units in its first 80 days.

Jobs resigns as CEO of Apple due to his worsening health, recommending Tim Cook as his successor. He is elected chairman of Apple's board. In his resignation letter, he writes, "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.

Steve Jobs dies at his home in Palo Alto at age 56, surrounded by his family. The cause of death is respiratory arrest related to his pancreatic tumor. His death prompts an outpouring of global tributes. Apple and Pixar are illuminated in his memory. He is buried at Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto.