Steve Jobs' Outlook on Apple After Returning in 1997

This WWDC conference video from 1997 show Steve Jobs taking a question and answer session from developers after returning to Apple. Apple acquired Steve Jobs' company NeXT in late 1996 and the NeXTStep operating system became the basis for Mac OS X. We highlighted this video once before amidst the iCloud rumors, but it is a very interesting video to watch, especially in light of Jobs' resignation as CEO of Apple.

At the time, Apple had just acquired NeXT, after years of losses and no clear plan for the future of the Mac operating system. Jobs came first as an advisor to then Apple CEO Gil Amelio, and eventually took the title of CEO. The video shows a particularly candid question and answer session with Steve Jobs who talks about the state of the company and his vision for the future. Some of the material is dated, but his outlook for the future seemed remarkably clear.

Steve Jobs says in the opening:

"I'm actually pretty excited about the way things are going. I think that there are some really good people, whom you met this week, running the key areas of Apple now. And I think they're making enormous progress towards executing what is a a pretty clear strategy. And that strategy revolves around one fundamental concept, which is to make some really great products. And I believe very firmly that there is still a very sizable market for some really great products. And there are some giant holes that we can fill with your help."

Top Rated Comments

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EiriasEmrys

92 months ago

Visionary

iCloud in 1997, pretty much summed up what Apple would push for this decade. I am always inspired as a leader by this man.

Rating: 5 Votes

Chundles

92 months ago

Wow, PROPER nerds. They were some proper nerds back then. Justin Timberlake couldn't be cast to play any of those guys.

Rating: 3 Votes

Chundles

92 months ago

Noah Wyle played Steve Jobs in that movie years ago. He played him very well i seem to remember.

Jobs yes, but Jobs was a rockstar. I'm talking about all the neck-beards with the button-down collars in the audience asking questions at their shoes.

Devs now seem far more socially aware.

Rating: 3 Votes

slrandall

92 months ago

He just comes across like a genius, always. What an incredible man.

"I don't care if Apple is viewed is different. I think it's very important that Apple is viewed as much better."

Rating: 2 Votes

mikey309

92 months ago

Very Sad

This makes me sad.

Without Steve Jobs Apple would have gone away. It's his innovation and hard work that brought the company from near extinction to one of America's greatest achievements. I pray for him and his family.

Rating: 1 Votes

scottishwildcat

92 months ago

iCloud in 1997, pretty much summed up what Apple would push for this decade. I am always inspired as a leader by this man.

Apple were by no means the first with this vision... Sun Microsystems was another that always insisted 'the network is the computer' long before most people really grasped what that meant. Unfortunately Sun's marketing was never as good as Apple's, and now they're just some gum on Oracle's shoe.

Rating: 1 Votes

KnightWRX

92 months ago

iCloud in 1997, pretty much summed up what Apple would push for this decade. I am always inspired as a leader by this man.

Yeah, Scott McNealy had such great visions for this industry. His bold claim of "The Network is the Computer!" ushered in an era of online communication, powered by the hardware and software of his company...

oh wait, you're talking of Steve Jobs. No seriously guys, there's nothing surprising about "cloud" computing in the late 90s, it was already a hot topic on many industry lips as the online boom was beginning and always-on broadband Internet was making its way into homes for the first time.

Steve hoped on the very best bandwagon to be on, something even Microsoft failed to see.

Rating: 1 Votes

jaimeastin

92 months ago

This was a great find! I really enjoyed it and understand SJ more than ever. I think it is really cool that so much that he/Apple wanted happened, exactly. Many, visionary is the word that I always hear and read about him, but dog-gone. He has a time machine somewhere, because he was spot on.

I think more than that, he has a true passion and i can really understand and APPRECIATE that. I am not a crazed Apple fan or Microsoft fan either, I just have a passion for technology and how it relates to me. This video sparked a lot inside of me. It is NO accident that Apple is where they are and though Steve has said NO to things I want or need, I will do like the rest have and be ok. Maybe I DO need to rethink my approach. All because I can program or do something the hardway(in some eyes) or my way because itis easy for me does not mean it should be set in stone. I am always preaching about change, and adopting something else, but I need to apply it even more. But even still, Steve just wants the best. I do to. I accept my best is different than others. DLNA is fine enough for me, lol :).

Rating: 1 Votes

DeepIn2U

92 months ago

It's his ability to quickly isolate new ground-breaking trends and make them part of a vision, part of a greater hole that is BETTER than the sum of the implemented parts. Next was the highlight of this announcement as they where working into the "Workstation" which is everything he sum'd up in this Q&A.

Many CEO's are lined up (for decades) to catch a cup-full of his soul-juice.

Rating: 1 Votes