Steve Jobs's Legacy to Live On in 'Apple University'

apple
Photo courtesy of Robert Scoble

The LA Times provides some new details about an internal project at Apple designed to take the company succesfully into the future despite the premature passing of Steve Jobs.

We first heard details about this "Apple University" project back in May when it was revealed that Steve Jobs had hired dean of Yale School of Management Joel Podolny to run an internal group featuring business professors and Harvard veterans to prepare employees for life at Apple after Jobs.

The LA Times cites an anonymous former Apple executive who describes the reasoning behind the project:

"Steve was looking to his legacy. The idea was to take what is unique about Apple and create a forum that can impart that DNA to future generations of Apple employees," said a former Apple executive who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preserve his relationship with the company. "No other company has a university charged with probing so deeply into the roots of what makes the company so successful."

Podolny left his position as Yale Business School dean and moved into an office between Steve Jobs and Tim Cook after he accepted the position in 2009. Podolny, himself, was personally influenced by Steve Jobs and Apple and even described writing his first computer program on an Apple II. In his farewell to Yale students, he wrote "While there are many great companies, I cannot think of one that has had as tremendous personal meaning for me as Apple".

Jobs reportedly identified specific tenets at Apple that he believed was responsible for Apple's success. Those included accountability, attention to detail, perfectionism, simplicity, and secrecy. Jobs is said to have personally overseen the creation of the courses and had sustained an interest in it since its inception. According to the LA Times, Jobs' other successful company, Pixar, also uses a similar corporate University model.

Steve Jobs passed away on Wednesday, October 5th.

Popular Stories

airpods pro 3 purple

New, Higher End AirPods Pro Coming This Year

Tuesday January 20, 2026 9:05 am PST by
Apple is planning to debut a high-end secondary version of AirPods Pro 3 this year, sitting in the lineup alongside the current model, reports suggest. Back in September 2025, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to introduce a successor to the AirPods Pro 3 in 2026. This would be somewhat unusual since Apple normally waits around three years to make major...
iOS 27 Mock Quick

iOS 27 Will Add These 8 New Features to Your iPhone

Sunday January 18, 2026 3:51 pm PST by
iOS 27 is still many months away, but there are already plenty of rumors about new features that will be included in the software update. The first beta of iOS 27 will be released during WWDC 2026 in June, and the update should be released to all users with a compatible iPhone in September. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

MacBook Pro Buyers Now Facing Up to a Two-Month Wait Ahead of New Models

Sunday January 18, 2026 6:50 pm PST by
MacBook Pro availability is tightening on Apple's online store, with select configurations facing up to a two-month delivery timeframe in the United States. A few 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro configurations with an M4 Pro chip are not facing any shipping delay, but estimated delivery dates for many configurations with an M4 Max chip range from February 6 to February 24 or even later. At...
smaller dynamic island iphone 18 pro Filip Vabrous%CC%8Cek

iPhone 18 Pro Leak: Smaller Dynamic Island, No Top-Left Camera Cutout

Tuesday January 20, 2026 2:34 am PST by
Over the last few months, rumors around the iPhone 18 Pro's front-panel design have been conflicted, with some supply-chain leaks pointing to under-display Face ID, reports suggesting a top-left hole-punch camera, and debate over whether the familiar Dynamic Island will shrink, shift, or disappear entirely. Today, Weibo-based leaker Instant Digital shared new details that appear to clarify the ...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Thursday January 15, 2026 10:56 am PST by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another eight months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we have recapped 12 features rumored for the iPhone 18 Pro models, as of January 2026: The same overall design is expected, with 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes, and a "plateau" housing three rear cameras Under-screen Face ID...

Top Rated Comments

Reach9 Avatar
187 months ago
Steve Jobs, prepared for everything. Even his own death.

Apple will still thrive and succeed. Thanks to Steve.

If only I could attend iUniversity..
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Small White Car Avatar
187 months ago
I think that, 50 years from now, Jobs will be a single chapter in computer classes but will be taught very heavily in business schools.

The way he ran Apple and, more importantly, the way he set it up to run after he was gone seem to be just as impressive as any electronic product he created.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JRoDDz Avatar
187 months ago


Sounds pretty weird, but it is genius. He cared for Apple more than we will ever understand.

Sad he left so early. Wish he was more like Bill though. Maybe the more laid back lifestyle could have added some years.

Unfortunately, cancer does not care whether you're laid back or not. It's an equal opportunity killer.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Confuzzzed Avatar
187 months ago
The best tribute to Steve Jobs is to celebrate (and support) the team he hand picked to succeed him. :apple:
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
stevenshizzle Avatar
187 months ago
I think that Steve has ensured that the ship is set on course and sails smoothly. The itinerary is set, and there's much more to come.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mrockm01 Avatar
187 months ago
That is very interesting. Steve is gone and will not impact a product directly ever again, but seems to have laid a foundation for a long time
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)