How a $1,300 garage startup became a $4 trillion titan
In 1976, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak raised just $1,300 by selling a Volkswagen bus and a calculator. Today, Apple is a global powerhouse valued at over $4 trillion, having survived near-collapse, internal coups, and a complete shift from computers to consumer electronics.
The company’s origins were modest. Founded in 1976 as Apple Computer Company, the venture was fueled by the sale of Steve Jobs' Volkswagen Bus and Steve Wozniak's HP-65 calculator, totaling roughly $7,400 in 2025 value. The initial goal was simply to market Wozniak's Apple I, a hand-built motherboard that allowed users to connect directly to a television.
Apple's trajectory has been defined by cycles of radical innovation and profound struggle. While the Apple II and the 1984 Macintosh launch—famous for Ridley Scott’s '1984' Super Bowl ad—established the company as a pioneer of graphical user interfaces, the 1990s brought significant decline. Internal power struggles led to Steve Jobs' departure in 1985, and by 1997, the company was reporting major losses as it lost market share to Windows-based PC clones.
The turning point arrived with the 1997 acquisition of NeXT, which brought Jobs back to lead a restructuring. Under his leadership, Apple transitioned from a computer-centric firm to a consumer electronics giant, adopting its current name in 2007. This era saw the release of the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, alongside services like the iTunes Store and iCloud.
Today, Apple stands as a dominant force in multiple sectors. As of 2024, it is the world's largest manufacturing company by revenue and the largest vendor of both mobile phones and tablets. Despite facing criticism regarding labor conditions and corporate ethics, the company remains one of the most valuable brands in history, with a market capitalization exceeding $4 trillion as of October 2025.
Source: Apple Inc.
