So long, turtleneck
Steve Jobs steps down as Apple CEO: "Unfortunately, that day has come"
Steve Jobs, the enigmatic and iconic founder of Apple Inc., has resigned as the company’s chief executive officer, being replaced by COO Tim Cook.
In his resignation letter, Jobs told the company board, "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."
He will stay on as chairman of the board.
After helping to usher in the era of the personal computer in the 1980s, Jobs took over as CEO of Apple in 1997 and served as the guiding force behind the tech giant’s rise to recent success. Any commuting Houstonian will recognize on a daily basis their most popular products, whether it’s an iPhone, iPod or iPad. It’s now hard to imagine a world without these gadgets. We have Jobs to thanks for them.
This latest development comes hardly as a surprise, considering his health concerns and his long battle with pancreatic cancer. But even during treatment, Jobs would still get on stage to present the next big thing from Apple. Most recently in June, Jobs introduced iCloud and the new MacOS called Lion. However, he has otherwise been on medical leave since January with Cook filling in leadership duties.
While it appears that Jobs will serve some function with the company, many industry analysts and followers will now wonder how much the absence of this larger-than-life personality will affect the Apple brand. Apple might be known for shiny products, but the black turtleneck was just as emblematic.