Apple Founded

Setting the scene

By 1976, personal computing was emerging, but computers were still kits for hobbyists. Steve Jobs, a 21-year-old college dropout, and Steve Wozniak, a 25-year-old engineer at Hewlett-Packard, were members of the Homebrew Computer Club in Silicon Valley. Wozniak had designed a computer built around the inexpensive MOS 6502 processor, with a keyboard and video output—far more user-friendly than the Altair. Jobs saw commercial potential and convinced Wozniak to start a company.

What happened

On April 1, 1976, Jobs, Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne founded Apple Computer in Jobs' parents' garage in Los Altos, California. Wayne sold his 10% stake for $800 two weeks later. Their first product, the Apple I, was a motherboard sold for $666.66. In 1977, they released the Apple II, the first mass-market personal computer with color graphics and a plastic case, priced at $1,298. It became a hit, especially after VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet, was released in 1979. Apple went public in 1980, creating 300 millionaires.

Why it still matters

Apple pioneered user-friendly computing with the Macintosh in 1984, which introduced the graphical user interface and mouse to the masses. After Jobs was forced out in 1985, Apple struggled, nearly bankrupt by 1997. Jobs returned that year and led a remarkable turnaround with the iMac, iPod (2001), iPhone (2007), and iPad (2010). Apple became the world's most valuable company, demonstrating the power of design, ecosystem integration, and premium branding. The company's focus on simplicity and user experience transformed multiple industries—music, phones, and computing—and made technology accessible to non-technical users.

Background

An apple is the round, edible fruit of an apple tree. Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple, the most widely grown in the genus, are cultivated worldwide. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Eurasia before they were introduced to North America by European colonists. The Apple II soon became one of the first mass-success PCs.