Photo of Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs

  • National Medal of Technology and Innovation
  • Computer Science

For their development and introduction of the personal computer which has sparked the birth of a new industry extending the power of the computer to individual users.

Steve Jobs is widely recognized as a pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s, along with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. The duo developed and marketed the Apple II, one of the first highly successful mass-produced personal computers. Since the company’s inception in Jobs’ garage in 1976, Apple has grown into a multi-billion dollar company that is known for pushing the boundaries of technology.

Jobs focused much of his career with Apple on designing the ‘look and feel’ of products—he created products designed to be physically appealing, and knew how to effectively market them to consumers. Walter Isaacson, Jobs’ official biographer, describes him as a “creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.”

Jobs has been awarded over 450 patents for technologies ranging from computers and portable devices to touch-based interfaces, speakers, keyboards, power adapters, staircases, clasps, sleeves, lanyards and packages. Known for taking chances on new products, Jobs relied on his ability to think first and foremost as someone who lives with technology rather than someone who produces it.

By Jen Santisi