Steve Jobs was an ambitious visionary and his influence shaped the entire IT industry. Despite his popularity, there are still many things that are not known about him.
Apple’s success story is almost unique in the world. Since it was founded in 1976, the company has been on a steady path to success, with a few brief exceptions.
However, this would not have been possible without Steve Jobs. His decisions made Apple great. Jobs knew how to get people excited about the Apple lifestyle. His legacy still influences products today.
Interest in him remains unbroken even after his death in 2011. Over the years, a lot of information about his professional life and himself has become known. And yet there are always interesting facts that reveal new details about Steve Jobs.
1. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak met when they were teenagers
Many people know that Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak co-founded Apple. There was even a third founding member, who quickly left Apple.
The two met in high school. Steve Jobs was only 13 years old at the time, and Wozniak was already 18.
2. Steve Jobs did not have a high school diploma
After high school, Steve Jobs went to college. But after just one semester he dropped out of his studies and instead only attended individual courses.
Some time later he was hired by Atari, where he and Wozniak worked together until founding Apple.
3. Steve Jobs chose the name Apple so that his company would be ahead of Atari in the phone book
When asked about the founding name, Jobs is said to have said that he wanted to be in front of his old employer in the phone book.
He also said he liked apples. At the same time, there was little time to choose a name on the day the company was founded. Documents from this historic period are now traded for a lot of money.
4. Steve Jobs couldn’t program
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak later said that his friend Steve Jobs never learned how to program. Since the early years of Apple, this task has always fallen to Wozniak himself.
Because Jobs didn’t have the same knowledge of technology, he honed his communication skills and became Apple’s marketing talent. He later used these skills to make big announcements on stage.
5. Steve Jobs became a billionaire through Pixar
After Jobs left Apple in 1985, he invested in the animation studio Pixar. At this point, the studio was still a division within Lucasfilm, George Lucas’ company.
Thanks to the huge film success of Toy Story and a subsequent IPO, Steve Jobs became very wealthy. When Disney took over the animation studio, Jobs was the largest individual shareholder.
6. Steve Jobs only earned a $1 annual salary when he returned to Apple
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple as CEO in 1997, he insisted on an annual salary of just $1. Apple was financially struggling and in the red.
With this severe salary cut and another brilliant idea, he helped Apple get back on its feet.
7. Steve Jobs didn’t have license plates on his car
Steve Jobs’ Mercedes was quickly identified on the company premises by Apple employees. It was the only car without license plates attached. Jobs feared that fans would steal the license plates to keep as souvenirs.
A legal loophole in California allowed him to drive a car without a license plate. Motor vehicles registered there only had to have a license plate after six months at the latest. So Jobs changed his leased vehicle every 6 months.
8. Steve Jobs’ life has been made into films several times
After his death in 2011, two biopics were made about the former Apple CEO. The first movie “Jobs” was released in 2013. Ashton Kutcher took on the role of Steve Jobs.
A second film entitled “Steve Jobs” followed a short time later in 2015. This time the actor Michael Fassbender played the role of the tech visionary on the big screen.
There is still a television film from 1999 called “The Silicon Valley Story”. In it, Steve Jobs was played by Noah Wyle. The film itself is told from the perspective of Steve Wozniak and Steve Ballmer, who worked at Microsoft at the time.
Those were our 8 facts about Steve Jobs. Did you already know all of these things or were there new insights for you too?
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