Steve Wozniak: American Electronics Engineer & Apple Cofounder
Stephen Gary Wozniak—often simply called “Woz”—is an American electronics engineer born on August 11, 1950, in San Jose, California. Revered for cofounding Apple Inc. with Steve Jobs, he is credited with designing the Apple II, among the first personal computers to achieve extensive commercial success.
Background & Early Life
Wozniak grew up in California’s flourishing technology hub, now known as Silicon Valley. His father was an electrical engineer for Lockheed Missiles and Space Company in Sunnyvale, which sparked Wozniak’s early fascination with electronics. Though mathematically gifted, he found standard classroom settings restrictive. He briefly studied at the University of Colorado at Boulder before returning home to attend a local community college and the University of California, Berkeley. It was during these years that he started tinkering with phone “phreaking” devices, including the “Blue Box” he developed and sold with Steve Jobs.
HP & Homebrew Days
Working at various small electronics firms throughout the Bay Area in the early 1970s led Wozniak to a position with Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 1975, by which time he had already decided to drop out of Berkeley formally. Meanwhile, he joined the Homebrew Computer Club, a grassroots collective passionate about the do-it-yourself Altair 8800 microcomputer. Wozniak built his own computer prototype in 1976 using a cutting-edge Intel 8080 microprocessor, a design HP ultimately declined to pursue.
Foundation of Apple
Steve Jobs, another Homebrew member, was so enthusiastic about Wozniak’s microcomputer prototype that the two teamed up to form their own company, Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.). Selling personal belongings—Jobs’s Volkswagen minibus and Wozniak’s programmable calculator supplied vital seed funding. Production took root in the Jobs family garage, where they built the Apple I circuit boards. The modest success of the Apple I persuaded them to create an even more user-friendly device, the Apple II, released in 1977.
Commercial Success & Innovation
The Apple II, featuring a built-in keyboard and color monitor support, quickly captured consumer interest, transforming the new company into a leading force in personal computing. Apple’s meteoric growth culminated in a public offering in 1980, pushing its market valuation beyond $1 billion at unprecedented speed. Wozniak’s additional developments included hardware designs for the Apple operating system and the 3.5-inch floppy disk drive for the Apple II series.
Plane Crash & Return to Education
In 1981, a serious plane crash left Wozniak with temporary traumatic amnesia, interrupting his active role at Apple. During his recovery, he re-enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley under the name “Rocky Clark.” Though he left again before completing a traditional degree, the university later granted him a bachelor of science in electrical engineering in 1987, recognizing his substantial industry contributions.
Later Ventures & Lasting Impact
In 1985, shortly after receiving a National Medal of Technology from President Ronald Reagan, Wozniak stepped away from full-time duties at Apple. He has since dedicated much of his time to philanthropic activities, especially in educational technology, and authored an autobiography titled iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It (2006). Although semi-retired, Wozniak frequently advises emerging tech ventures. He served as chief scientist for Fusion-io beginning in 2009 and later for Primary Data. In 2020, he branched into blockchain by cofounding Efforce, a platform enabling eco-focused businesses to receive funding via cryptocurrency tokens.
Across decades of technological evolution, Wozniak’s creativity and philanthropy remain as influential as ever, cementing his place as a pioneer of personal computing.
