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Steve Jobs dies at 56

Steve Jobs, the visionary tech giant who shepherded Apple Inc. to renewed prominence in the world of personal computing, has died, the Associated Press reports.

"We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today," read a statement by BusinessWire attributed to Apple's board of directors. "Steve's brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.

"His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts." Jobs was 56.

"I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know," Jobs said in a news release. "Unfortunately, that day has come." Jobs suffered from health problems and appeared gaunt since the mid-2000s. He was treated for pancreatic cancer and had a liver transplant in 2009, when he took a leave of absence from the company.

Jobs had been on his current leave from the company since Jan. 17, with Tim Cook running the company in his absence. Jobs continued with Apple as chairman of the board, but his second stint at the helm of the company he founded in 1976 with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne was over.

"The board has complete confidence that Tim is the right person to be our next CEO," said Apple board member Art Levinson, chairman of Genetech. "Tim's 13 years of service to Apple have been marked by outstanding performance, and he has demonstrated remarkable talent and sound judgment in everything he does."

Trading of Apple shares was suspended before the announcement. They were up 0.7 percent, closing $376.18. Jobs left Apple for the first time in 1985 after clashing with then-CEO John Sculley. He started NeXT Computer, and in 1986 he bought The Graphics Group, which would later become Pixar. Pixar partnered with Disney to release a string of successful animated features. Disney bought Pixar in 2006 for $7.4 billion.

Jobs returned to Apple when the company bought NeXT in 1996. In his second run at the company, he launched a revolution in the way personal electronics are designed and marketed.
Among the notable introductions of his second tenure are the iPod, iPhone, iPad and iMac.