Steven Paul Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American entrepreneur, inventor, and business magnate who co-founded Apple Inc. and served as its chairman and chief executive officer. Regarded as a pioneering figure in the personal computer revolution, Jobs was widely recognized for his visionary leadership, his focus on aesthetic design, and his ability to foresee the commercial potential of emerging technologies. His career, marked by both transformative successes and high-profile setbacks, fundamentally altered the telecommunications, music, film, and computing industries. Born in San Francisco, California, to Joanne Schieble and Abdulfattah Jandali, Jobs was placed for adoption shortly after birth and raised by Paul and Clara Jobs in Mountain View, California, in an area that would become known as Silicon Valley. Growing up in this environment, he developed a keen interest in electronics, often working on projects in his family garage. In 1972, he enrolled at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, but withdrew after only one semester. Despite leaving formal education, he continued to audit courses that interested him, including a calligraphy class that he later credited for the typography of early Apple products. Following his time at Reed, Jobs traveled to India to study Buddhism and worked briefly at the video game company Atari. In 1976, Jobs co-founded Apple Computer, Inc. alongside his friend Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in his parents’ garage. The company’s initial success was driven by the Apple I and the subsequent Apple II, which became one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputers. In the early 1980s, Jobs spearheaded the development of the Macintosh, the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a graphical user interface and a mouse. Following a power struggle with Apple’s board of directors and CEO John Sculley, Jobs resigned from the company in 1985. After leaving Apple, Jobs founded the computer company NeXT, which focused on the education and business markets. While NeXT’s hardware was not a widespread commercial success, its software operating system, NEXTSTEP, later became the foundation for Apple's modern operating systems. In 1986, Jobs purchased the computer graphics division of Lucasfilm, which became Pixar Animation Studios. Under his leadership, Pixar produced "Toy Story" in 1995, the first full-length computer-animated feature film, and became a dominant force in the film industry before its eventual sale to The Walt Disney Company in 2006. In 1997, Apple acquired NeXT, facilitating Jobs’ return to the company he co-founded. He was named interim CEO and later became the permanent CEO, overseeing a massive turnaround for the firm. During this second tenure, Jobs oversaw the introduction of revolutionary consumer products, including the iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. These devices reshaped global consumer behavior and established Apple as one of the most valuable technology companies in the world. Regarding his personal life, Jobs married Laurene Powell in 1991, with whom he had three children: Reed, Erin, and Eve. He also had a daughter, Lisa Brennan-Jobs, from a previous relationship. In 2003, Jobs was diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumor, a rare form of pancreatic cancer. He managed his health issues for several years, including a liver transplant in 2009, while continuing to lead Apple. In August 2011, he resigned as CEO and was appointed chairman of the board. He died on October 5, 2011, at his home in Palo Alto, California, due to complications from his cancer. His death prompted global tributes honoring his role as a technological innovator and his enduring impact on how modern society interacts with technology.