15 yrs since he passed away, Tim Cook and John Ternus remember Steve Jobs on death anniversary

Tim Cook and John Ternus pay tribute to Steve Jobs on the 15th anniversary of his death, remembering the Apple co-founder's lasting impact on the company, his obsession with simplicity and his focus on creating products that changed how we use technology.

In Short

• Cook said Jobs changed the world and countless lives, including his own
• Ternus said Jobs's focus on detail still shapes Apple's work today
• Jobs died in 2011 after resigning as chief executive and naming Cook

It has been 15 years since Apple co-founder Steve Jobs passed away, but his influence can still be seen across the company’s products, from the Mac and iPhone to the iPad and Apple’s focus on simple, user-friendly design. Remembering Jobs’ legacy on his death anniversary, Apple’s former CEO Tim Cook and current CEO John Ternus took a moment to pay tribute to the company’s co-founder and reflect on his lasting impact on Apple.

“There are people who leave a mark on the world, and then there are people who change it entirely. Steve changed the world and so many lives in the process. He certainly changed my life forever. His spirit lives on in everything he created and everyone he inspired,” Cook wrote in a post on X.

Ternus also remembered Jobs, saying, “The way Steve taught us to care about every detail, every experience, every person, still guides our work today. Forever grateful.”

The legacy of Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs died on October 5, 2011, at the age of 56, after battling pancreatic cancer. He left the world just weeks after he stepped down as Apple CEO and recommended Tim Cook as his successor.

Jobs co-founded Apple with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in 1976. Under his leadership, the company went on to create some of its most iconic products. The Apple II helped put the company on the map, while the Macintosh, launched in 1984, brought graphical user interfaces and mouse-driven computing to a much wider audience.

After leaving Apple in 1985 following a turbulent period at the company, Jobs founded NeXT and became closely involved with Pixar. Apple acquired NeXT in 1997, bringing Jobs back to the company. What followed was one of Apple’s biggest transformations, with Jobs overseeing the launch of the iMac in 1998, the iPod in 2001, the iPhone in 2007 and the iPad in 2010.

But Jobs’ influence on Apple went beyond individual products. During his time at the company, Apple opened its first retail stores, launched the iTunes Store and App Store, and built the tightly integrated approach to hardware, software and services that still defines the company today.

The secret sauce

But what made Apple so successful under Steve Jobs? Well, a big part of it was his obsession with simplicity. Jobs believed technology should not feel complicated or overwhelming. Instead, it should be easy to understand, easy to use and, of course, look good. As Walter Isaacson wrote in his biography of Jobs, simplicity was central to the way he approached both technology and design. Jobs himself once put it simply: “Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple.”

You probably also remember Jobs for his signature look: a black turtleneck, blue jeans and trainers. Interestingly, that simple style reflected his approach to Apple’s products too. He wanted to remove anything unnecessary and make the experience as simple and intuitive as possible.

His approach to design was influenced by several things, including Japanese Zen Buddhism and his interest in simplicity. Working with designers such as Hartmut Esslinger and Jony Ive, Jobs helped create the clean and distinctive design language that eventually became closely associated with Apple.

And 15 years after his death, you can still see that influence across Apple. From the way its products look and work to its focus on small details and the overall user experience, Jobs’ ideas continue to shape the company.

- Ends