History of Steve Wozniak in Timeline

Stephen Gary Wozniak, nicknamed "Woz," is an American technology entrepreneur, electrical engineer, computer programmer, and inventor. He co-founded Apple Computer with Steve Jobs in 1976. Wozniak's work at Apple in the 1970s and 1980s established him as a key figure in the personal computer revolution, recognized for his technical expertise and innovative designs.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements

1923: Birth of Margaret Louise Wozniak

In 1923, Margaret Louise Wozniak (née Kern), Steve Wozniak's mother, was born.

1925: Birth of Francis Jacob "Jerry" Wozniak

In 1925, Francis Jacob "Jerry" Wozniak, Steve Wozniak's father, was born.

August 11, 1950: Stephen Gary Wozniak's Birth

On August 11, 1950, Stephen Gary Wozniak was born in San Jose, California, to Margaret Louise Wozniak and Francis Jacob 'Jerry' Wozniak.

1968: Graduation from Homestead High School

In 1968, Wozniak graduated from Homestead High School in Cupertino, California.

1969: Return to the San Francisco Bay Area

In 1969, Wozniak returned to the San Francisco Bay Area after being expelled from the University of Colorado Boulder for hacking the university's computer system.

October 1971: Building and Selling Blue Boxes

In October 1971, after reading "Secrets of the Little Blue Box", Wozniak built blue boxes, and Jobs sold them, marking their first business partnership.

1971: Introduction to Steve Jobs

In 1971, Wozniak was introduced to Steve Jobs by Bill Fernandez, marking the beginning of their friendship and future partnership.

1971: First Meeting with Steve Jobs

In 1971, during his college years, Steve Wozniak first met Steve Jobs through a mutual friend who thought they would connect due to their shared interest in electronics and pranks.

1971: Design and Build of First Computer

In June 1971, Wozniak designed and built his first computer with his friend Bill Fernandez as a self-taught engineering project.

1973: Work on Atari's Breakout Game

In 1973, Steve Jobs contracted Wozniak to minimize the number of chips on the circuit board for Atari's Breakout game, which led to Wozniak significantly reducing the chip count and Jobs not fully disclosing the bonus received.

1975: Design and Development of the Apple I

In 1975, Wozniak began designing and developing the Apple I, aiming to impress the Homebrew Computer Club and contributing to the microcomputer industry's development.

March 1, 1976: Completion of the Apple I Design

On March 1, 1976, Wozniak completed the basic design of the Apple I computer, including the hardware, circuit board designs, and operating system.

April 1, 1976: Formation of Apple Computer Company

On April 1, 1976, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne officially formed the Apple Computer Company, now known as Apple Inc.

November 1976: Mike Markkula Joins Apple

In November 1976, Mike Markkula provided substantial funding to Apple, and Wozniak resigned from HP to become the vice president in charge of research and development at Apple.

2024 Topps Heritage News Flashbacks #NF-1 Altair 8800 Official MLB Baseball Trading Card

Check it on Amazon

1976: Co-founding of Apple Computer

In 1976, Steve Wozniak co-founded Apple Computer with Steve Jobs, marking a pivotal moment in the personal computer revolution.

April 1977: Introduction of the Apple II at West Coast Computer Faire

In April 1977, Jobs and Wozniak introduced the Apple II at the West Coast Computer Faire, marking the launch of the first personal computer with color graphics capability.

May 1977: First Article about the Apple II in Byte Magazine

In May 1977, Wozniak's first article about the Apple II was published in Byte magazine, contributing to the computer's recognition and success.

1977: Introduction of the Apple II

In 1977, the Apple II, designed primarily by Wozniak, was introduced as one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputers.

1978: Release of the Disk II Floppy Disk Drive

In 1978, Wozniak designed the Disk II floppy disk drive, released specifically for the Apple II, to improve data storage.

1979: Influence on the Original Macintosh Concepts

From 1979, Wozniak significantly influenced the development of the original Macintosh concepts alongside Jef Raskin.

1979: Initiation into Freemasons

In 1979, Steve Wozniak joined the Freemasons to spend more time with his then-wife, Alice Robertson. He was initiated at Charity Lodge No. 362 in Campbell, California, now part of Mt. Moriah Lodge No. 292 in Los Gatos.

1980: Apple Goes Public

In 1980, Apple went public, resulting in significant financial profitability and making Jobs and Wozniak millionaires.

February 7, 1981: Plane Crash

On February 7, 1981, the Beechcraft Bonanza A36TC piloted by Steve Wozniak crashed after takeoff from Sky Park Airport in Scotts Valley, California, resulting in injuries to Wozniak and his three passengers. Wozniak suffered severe face and head injuries, including anterograde amnesia. The NTSB cited premature liftoff and pilot inexperience as probable causes.

June 1981: Marriage to Candice Clark

In June 1981, Steve Wozniak married slalom canoe gold-medalist Candice Clark.

1981: Jobs Takes Over Macintosh Project

In 1981, Steve Jobs took over the Macintosh project after Wozniak's brief departure from Apple due to an airplane accident.

May 1982: First US Festival

In May 1982, Steve Wozniak, with help from Bill Graham, founded Unuson and sponsored the first US Festival, intended to celebrate evolving technologies with a mix of music, computers, television, and people.

1984: Apple IIc Release

In 1984, Apple released the Apple IIc, which made the Apple II platform semi-portable.

1984: Creation of the 'Zaltair' Brochure

In 1984, Wozniak printed fake brochures of a non-existent product called 'Zaltair' as a joke, featuring superlative descriptions of a computer that solved every problem in the world.

1984: Discontinuation of the Apple III

In 1984, the Apple III, intended as the successor to the Apple II, was discontinued after being a commercial failure.

1985: Wozniak Gifts Jobs a Framed Zaltair Brochure

In 1985, Wozniak gave Steve Jobs a framed copy of the 'Zaltair' brochure as a birthday gift, after Jobs had initially fallen for the prank and believed it was a real computer.

1985: Wozniak Leaves Apple

In 1985, Wozniak permanently left Apple to pursue other ventures.

1985: Founding of CL 9

In 1985, after leaving Apple, Steve Wozniak founded CL 9.

1985: Continued Employment at Apple in Ceremonial Capacity

In 1985, after stepping down from his active role, Wozniak remained an employee of Apple in a ceremonial capacity, a position he holds as of June 2024.

1986: Apple IIGS Release

In 1986, the Apple II platform was extended by the 16-bit Apple IIGS, with some input from Steve Wozniak.

1987: CORE Remote Release

In 1987, CL 9 developed and released the CORE, the first programmable universal remote control.

1987: Founding of CL 9 and Universal Remote Release

In 1987, Wozniak founded CL 9 and created the first programmable universal remote.

1990: Electronic Frontier Foundation Founding

In 1990, Steve Wozniak helped found the Electronic Frontier Foundation and provided initial funding.

1990: Computers in Soviet Union Schools Initiative

In 1990, Wozniak initiated a project to place computers in K–12 schools in the former Soviet Union.

November 15, 1993: Apple IIe Discontinuation

On November 15, 1993, the Apple IIe was discontinued, marking the end of the Apple II series.

1994: Death of Francis Jacob "Jerry" Wozniak

In 1994, Francis Jacob "Jerry" Wozniak, Steve Wozniak's father, passed away.

1998: Co-authored Joke Book

In 1998, Steve Wozniak co-authored with Larry Wilde The Official Computer Freaks Joke Book.

2000: Induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame

In 2000, Wozniak was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his work and contributions to the tech industry.

2001: Wheels of Zeus (WOZ) Founded

In 2001, Steve Wozniak founded Wheels of Zeus (WOZ) to create wireless GPS technology.

2002: Board of Directors at Ripcord Networks

In 2002, Steve Wozniak joined the board of directors of Ripcord Networks, Inc.

2002: Board of Directors at Danger, Inc.

Later in 2002, Steve Wozniak joined the board of directors of Danger, Inc., the maker of the Hip Top.

2006: Autobiography Publication

In 2006, Steve Wozniak co-authored with Gina Smith his autobiography, iWoz: From Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It. The book became a New York Times Best Seller.

iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It

Check it on Amazon

2006: Acquicor Technology Founded

In 2006, Steve Wozniak founded Acquicor Technology, a holding company for acquiring and developing technology companies.

2008: Relationship with Kathy Griffin

In 2008, Steve Wozniak had a high-profile relationship with actress Kathy Griffin, who described him as "the biggest techno-nerd in the Universe".

2009: Chief Scientist at Fusion-io

From 2009, Steve Wozniak was chief scientist at Fusion-io.

October 2011: Death of Steve Jobs

In October 2011, Steve Jobs passed away, Steve Wozniak maintained a friendly relationship with Steve Jobs until his death.

2013: Wozniak's Statement on Jobs Taking Over the Macintosh Project

In a 2013 interview, Wozniak recounted that in 1981, Steve Jobs took over the Macintosh project after his plane crash.

2014: Death of Margaret Louise Wozniak

In 2014, Margaret Louise Wozniak (née Kern), Steve Wozniak's mother, passed away.

2014: Chief Scientist at Primary Data

In 2014, Steve Wozniak became chief scientist at Primary Data.

2015: Silicon Valley Comic Con Announced

In 2015, Steve Wozniak announced the annual Silicon Valley Comic Con (SVCC) event with Stan Lee.

October 2017: Woz U Founded

In October 2017, Steve Wozniak founded Woz U, an online educational technology service for students and employees.

2017: Wozniak Expresses Disdain for Money and Receives Polish Citizenship

In 2017, Steve Wozniak told Fortune magazine about his aversion to money and how it could corrupt values. Also in 2017, he received Polish citizenship and visited Poland to meet with government and technology industry representatives, as well as to visit his father’s ancestral hometown.

December 2018: Woz U Licensed as a School

As of December 2018, Woz U was licensed as a school with the Arizona state board.

2020: Launch of Efforce

In 2020, Steve Wozniak announced the launch of Efforce, a marketplace for funding ecologically friendly projects, utilizing a WOZX cryptocurrency token and blockchain technology.

July 2021: Support for Right to Repair Movement

In July 2021, Steve Wozniak voiced his support for the right to repair movement in a Cameo video responding to activist Louis Rossmann. Wozniak described the issue as something deeply affecting and credited Apple's early success to open technology in the 1970s.

March 1, 2022: Privateer Space Software Debut

On March 1, 2022, Privateer Space, co-founded by Steve Wozniak, debuted the first version of its space traffic monitoring software.

May 2023: Wozniak's Concerns on AI

In May 2023, Steve Wozniak in an interview with the BBC expressed concerns about AI making scams more difficult to detect, highlighting its potential misuse by malicious actors.

November 2023: Wozniak Suffers Minor Stroke

In November 2023, Wozniak suffered a minor stroke while preparing to speak at a conference in Mexico City. He was briefly hospitalized before returning home.

December 2023: Wozniak Granted Serbian Citizenship

In early December 2023, Steve Wozniak spoke at a conference in Belgrade, Serbia, where he was granted Serbian citizenship through a “Citizenship by Exception” program. He expressed strong support for Serbia.

June 2024: Wozniak's Current Engagements

As of June 2024, Steve Wozniak continues to fund entrepreneurial efforts in diverse fields and holds ceremonial employment at Apple, along with Polish and Serbian citizenship.