Steve Jobs 1997 Interview: Defending His Commitment To Apple | CNBC

In an October 1997 interview with CNBC, Apple CEO Steve Jobs spoke passionately about returning to the company he founded.
» Subscribe to CNBC: cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC
About CNBC: From 'Wall Street' to 'Main Street' to award winning original documentaries and Reality TV series, CNBC has you covered. Experience special sneak peeks of your favorite shows, exclusive video and more.
Connect with CNBC News Online
Get the latest news: www.cnbc.com/
Find CNBC News on Facebook: cnb.cx/LikeCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Twitter: cnb.cx/FollowCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Google+: cnb.cx/PlusCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Instagram: cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC
Steve Jobs 1997 Interview: Defending His Commitment To Apple | CNBC

[@veloce5491]

"when the music stops, some people won't have a chair." What a poetic way to say "we're gonna have to fire some people". lol

[@user-zg9pr6xb2f]

Are you american

[@user-zg9pr6xb2f]

Are you american

[@user-zg9pr6xb2f]

Are you americamn

[@veloce5491]

@@user-zg9pr6xb2f no

[@morepropertyzbycoachtechnique]

i wish i could think like that

[@NovenJaisi]

It's great when we get an unseen interview of Steve cause its almost like we have him back just for a little bit.

[@greglarry11]

So true. We can see what the genius was like. Thanks to KZbin.

[@m.a.4949]

What genius? Dont use that word . He's a good marketier

[@FRAMEDSKATEKREW69]

@@m.a.4949 he was a genius entrepreneur

[@chrissnyder8415]

It was on TV. Plenty of people saw this interview. LOL@U

[@StEvUgnIn]

Yes, plus I still we miss footages of him between Next and Apple. It's good to see how his face started evolving from his 30 years old look to his 40 mature balding state

[@kushagrapandey2466]

Hate him or Love him, call him techie or not, call him rude or kind. This guy was a legend and that's it.

[@redfield1007]

You sir........are a cringe fest lol

[@max-mtg]

on god

[@dissinfo6358]

More an agent than a legend.

[@thygreek8076]

@@dissinfo6358 Alas, someone has done their research on this individual.

[@-E-M-M-]

Steve was a great man with a great mission he just did't care, bother, what people said about him that was just a waste of time for him.

[@valentin19998]

Steve only lived 11 years into the 21th century but changed so much. I wonder where humanity would be if he still lived. This man was a pure genius, he will still be talked about in a hundred years.

[@kab00mKap0w]

Our laptops would still use that magnetic connector for charging instead of USB-C. Oh the humanity!

[@SWTobito0702]

Ah yes, the 21th century. There's literally nothing like it.

[@SWTobito0702]

But you are right. Steve Jobs was one of a kind and he will be missed dearly.

[@helloken]

I believe he is of the greatness and accomplishments to be talked about in a thousand years let alone a hundred.

[@KikiNation1]

100 years is a long time. I doubt it. And I liked Steve.

[@Tubingonline1]

Always so articulate in communicating his vision and strategy! SUPERB!

[@JAMAL12382]

Ashique Desai LSD

[@JAMAL12382]

Miss reign micro-dosing

[@TimPreissler]

obviously highly intelligent but if i had to guess by the looks of him here and there and just the fact that its like this most of the time: he received the planned questions beforehand

[@mattkim96]

@Tim Preissler this must be your first Steve Jobs interview then. Throughout the decades in essentially every interview jobs is in he’s very articulate. In many uncut interviews you can see that he often pauses quite a while before saying a word, and when he does speak he’s very intentional with his words. You can tell he’s thought about a lot of this stuff, not for the interview but while leading Apple, Pixar, and next, and he seems particularly adept at clearly communicating his point. Some videos, like this one, cut from answer to answer so you don’t see his long pauses.

[@iandalcourt8651]

You know.... the one thing that seems magical about Steve has always been the way he so easily articulated his words when discussing Apple. I came to the realization that when your vision in your own minds eye is so clear... it’s extremely easy to articulate your thoughts into words when discussing it.

[@petekdemircioglu]

True

[@alirezaetezadi7469]

"I don't feel my job is to win a popularity contest right now". One couldn't explain his motivation and commitment to a company better than this.

[@criptik5208]

What does this mean

[@alirezaetezadi7469]

@@criptik5208 Hi. He basically means that he does not run Apple to gain self-popularity, but to expand new horizons in technology for the users and the tech world. He is going to help the company reach higher goals, not to show off for the media and the audience. He has purpose other than becoming and staying a celebrity.

[@topsyturvyy4558]

@@criptik5208 He wasn't interested in fame, fortune, being the most brilliant CEO but to exploit his ideas to the nth! and he did! Many people don't understad his role, they critize him being a fake inventor, a fake this or that, He was not an inventor per-se he was a huge CEO a role model for all!

[@criptik5208]

@@topsyturvyy4558 what is nth?

[@centralprocessingunit4988]

because he already won popularity because that was his first goal.

[@sourPollo]

Look at Apple now. What a legend.

[@BagHoldingStonks]

effing Legend

[@YasinHasan]

apple is crap now

[@tlf361]

Yasin Hasan So ignorant and blinded...

[@matthewsmith5774]

Timothy L exactly, still best phone, laptops, os, watch, stylus, tablets. Like wtf Steve would be like “why does an Apple Pencil exist” and then we’d explain and he’d be like “ahhh seems legit”

[@dbtest117]

Definitely best os.

[@wibas2008]

He has a gifted voice that helped him make great presentations

[@SirajRaval]

The man. The myth. The legend. He lives on in all of us

[@spinLOL533]

Siraj Raval lol

[@abcdxx1059]

here after your startup challenge looking forward to win 🏆

[@vimalcurio]

Hey siraj

[@ThePandaGuitar]

Are you ok man?

[@andyw6996]

...the racist.

[@CaptainPlanet007]

He’s good at responding to questions to clarify the interviewer. Oh Steve, man I miss him!

[@CaptainPlanet007]

“ I’m committed to this, and see Apple turn around” boy did it turn around!! #1 company on earth!!

[@AliA-by2ju]

He Sold all his Stocks 😅

[@chuahhockleong9916]

I'm not an Apple fan, but I gotta admit Steve Jobs is really really committed to Apple Inc. I guess, not even one of Apple Inc board of directors can take an annual salary of US$1.

[@hewhohasnoidentity4377]

When he talks of his salary being $1 per year, that was accurate. He was also given stock options which he never took advantage of, which really upset a lot of people because he insisted they be changed to make them more valuable and caused an SEC investigation and media problems and he still didn't use the options. He did become very wealthy in this time from his running of Pixar and selling it to Disney which made him the largest shareholder of Disney.

[@mrbale1815]

Never been an Apple fan but got ipad just about half year ago, so smooth, optimised.

[@bennysaa]

kazakh mustang I think either you hate Apple & their devices or you goddamn love them. I‘d never ever go back to a non-apple computer & phone.

[@felixf4378]

I have an Ipad pro 11inch and I love it. My gf has an Iphone Xs and I dont like it. I love my S10. I dont understand people who just follow a single company, I buy what I think is the best product.

[@coffeehigh420]

He was absolutely brilliant.

[@discoverymoi]

Bound to be 7 years since this hero left us, Every video abut him is special to me. Thank you Steve.

[@guitardost]

His vision was so strong and came true....respect steve..!!

[@videocat1366]

I like how he always comes back to the business aspect. Quality leads to sales. Pay attention to producing good stuff and the dollars will follow.

[@Sprkl8-sb4cr]

Legend pure and simple. Admire him so much, he is so innovative, creative, and pure genius!

[@sivakrishnat8225]

He used the exact number of words required in the most efficient way in order to convey his ideas that is so great about him. PS: and the voice too is crystal clear.

[@tanibroshka9029]

Do explain!

[@mrschneebly9691]

This man had an awful lot of good sense and very strong communication and presentation skills.

[@Fritha71]

Nobody loved Apple more than Steve

[@denissssss8579]

He is one of the rare personalities who should NOT die, NOT that young!

[@prometheon123]

Compare Steve Jobs’s comments in this interview to those made by Steve Balmer in his exit interview with Bloomberg. Jobs focused on products. Balmer focused on profits. Which company is more beloved by its customers?

[@brandonknable7890]

Agreed

[@brandonknable7890]

@newmicrobot you wish

[@MHeymann]

@newmicrobot Haaaaaaaahahahaha no.

[@do-or-die5822]

If Apple is shut down there is hardly any impact.. If Microsoft is shut down the world will stop..

[@prometheon123]

Latesh lilwa The world wouldn’t stop if either company shut down. Fortunately, there are excellent alternatives to both companies today, and that competition has made Apple and Microsoft better. E.g., Red Hat, Canonical, IBM, Google, etc.

[@VictorWhite246]

What a true visionary! I am amazed of Steve's thought pattern as a human!

[@rodjames5771]

Thank you for uploading this video - i have never seen this before - what a great insight into the methodology of the turnaround.

[@marijnstollenga1601]

I'll say one thing, Apple is trading 4 times it's sales right now.

[@christiansherriff176]

What's the conclusion?

[@HamburgerHelperDeath]

@Benny Goodman They spend billions on R&D. You have no clue. They are working on a pair of sunglasses that basically projects your phone, but way beyond Google Glass. They are working on advanced VR,augmented reality, and automated driving to name a handful of their projects. You say no innovation and yet their new M1 silicon chip outperforms Intel and run’s way cooler with a fraction of the energy use. If you compare software benchmarks testing speeds, Apple’s newest phone is about 2 years ahead of the next fastest Android. If you look at the numbers, in terms of software benchmark tests, the iPhone 8 scores well against the most current Androids in mid 2021.

[@amirsaeed8733]

@@HamburgerHelperDeath Well said my friend.

[@jamespharris2494]

5:37 to 6:02 almost brought me to tears.

[@redfield1007]

You need to stop being so emotional . That's a really unattractive quality in a man that is.

[@Marsmallos]

a) that is 100% wrong b) why does it matter to you that somebody else exhibits a quality that you find unattractive c) who are you to tell them how to live their life?

[@redfield1007]

+Marsmallos haha

[@InTheLifeOfAnArtist]

James Pharris almost

[@sherbournesubwaymess]

The amount of card playing here is surreal. - Steve intentionally sold his shares to tank the stock and pressure the board to boot Gil Amelio. - Steve always wanted to be the CEO. He only kept the 'interim' as a trump card to play at a later date. In every respect, he focused 100 percent on the company and not some salary and he did what few execs would do: He EARNED the CEO title. - Steve brought staffers in one after another on a Saturday...heard what they did, criticized them and fired them on the spot. He axed a LOT of employees (4100 in total/31 percent of the company). However this is what SAVED the company. He eliminated the bureaucracy/fat and legacy employees...and really made the entire operation a lean environment.

[@KonathalaRohit]

Bring us more! Clearly there a lot that hasn't gone out yet. Even after 8 years, year after year, these videos are unfolding. Just put em all on KZbin please.

[@baldy555]

He has always been so sure, so confident, so convincing.

[@complexitysimple1769]

My favorite Entrepreneur of all times. This guy changed the course of humanity.

[@davidforan2528]

Steve Jobs was an international business genius that changed the world for betterment of everyone globally

[@aviduser1961]

Steve Jobs selling NeXT to Apple and later becoming CEO was totally unexpected. What followed were some very exciting years.

[@toytalkers881]

He lived in Memphis for a bit during his cancer treatment. We all knew who he was but everyone left him alone and he stayed pretty publicly unseen. Sad to have lost someone with such credibility and ethics

[@jshepard152]

He moved to Tennessee to get on a shorter transplant list.

[@probability162]

The best business man of all time in my view, the man of his words. The story of Steve Jobs vs Apple is far more interesting than any Hollywood movie. I wish one day Christopher Nolan will make a trilogy about him and Apple. That must be a hell of a movie.

[@SuperChooser123]

nice job cutting out the questions so I don't even know what he's talking about

[@r.kroner99]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@itrebor]

You can connect the dots pretty easily though.

[@SumTingWong1482]

You have reached your own threshold of intelligence. IQ 103. This video is for IQ 104 or above.

[@sirosihan7698]

@@SumTingWong1482 what do you mean

[@SumTingWong1482]

si rosihan I mean (sarcastically) that erikeeper is smart but not quite smart enough to deduce what question was asked based on Mr. Jobs’ thorough answers.

[@brianbozo2447]

At this point Steve only had 14 years left .

[@aeroaddict]

And look at all he did in those remaining years.

[@olumluhayatbugunvarsinyari534]

He did not have 14 years at that point, the thing that destroy him was randomness of universe which can exist as Chaos Theory or "Butterfly Effect" which suggests "small effects can cause big things". He rise with randomness and died with it, this is universe. The future is in the hand of randomness. And the only thing that can only create it is simulation, so you live in a simulation which can create "infinity" amount of scenarios of you. The atoms and every particle near you is the randomness itself, do and enjoy with it. Randomness will be your end, enjoy it. Steve Job enjoyed it, you too.

[@winnerwaffle4467]

ÖLÜMLÜHAYATBUGÜNVARSINYARINYOKSUN so how many years did he have left then?

[@BadMannerKorea]

@@olumluhayatbugunvarsinyari534 Sounds like mumbo jump to me. Sounds to me like the guy thought voodoo magic would fix cancer.

[@rODIUMuk]

@OutFoxingFoxysOrder cook is as amazing though.

[@ImranKhan-fk6mb]

He has been an inspiration in story telling for this generation

[@TarunJakhodia]

The respect people have for him at least in this comments section, made me cry! What a man!!! Deserves everything and more

[@astroboy3002]

Well we need a midget to weigh in on that...

[@matthewomalley-qh1pc]

Great comment! 👍

[@xdgs567z]

Would have bought Apple stock in 1997 if I had seen this interview, great CEOs create great companies

[@jshepard152]

I distinctly remember Apple stock being $13 back in the day.

[@sledgehammered1765]

If you did you would have sold it when it doubled soon after. It would take nerves of steel or just plain forgetfulness that you even owned it to hold on to it this long.

[@henne2k]

Don’t miss out on Tesla 😉

[@aaronw9036]

A genuine genius!

[@ktchappell8119]

Aaron W yep

[@redfield1007]

Yes in marketing terms. He never built anything though.

[@spinLOL533]

Redfield 100% Yea lol

[@lbch_youtube]

appleharmedme.blogspot.com I feel sad. Apple is not really Apple anymore. They're more of a criminal gang.

[@TheChowitzer]

A genius perhaps, but he was anything but genuine.

[@MrTangent]

There’s been few public personas I cried about when they died. Steve Jobs was one of them. David Bowie the other. Every Macworld/WWDC or other “Stevenote” was as close to my own personal holiday and I always counted down the days. Not just to see the magical new hardware and software, but to be engulfed ever so briefly in Steve’s reality-distortion field. God damn I miss you, Steve.

[@honestly_vikh]

I too never saw him bro - I am 17 rn but a lot inspired by him had the chance of reading his biography, his movies and watch his speeches thanks to KZbin - such a Legend & Visionary , I feel really jealous that you could see him live in front 👀🙏🏻😓😓

[@MrTangent]

@@honestly_vikh Sadly I never got to see him live. I turned in to the livestreams of the events. I had a chance to go though, and stupidly didn’t. I regret it now.

[@adamjdonohue]

10 years later from this, he announces the most important product to everyone in the world right now.

[@phoebekatetaynan8158]

Good way to start within yourself. Got Steve Jobs as my mentor. Practice mindfulness and focus like him.

[@IwanJunifanto]

i love to see 2 things from this vid: steve when hi smiling and the way he explain about things.. his idea and his stand point

[@Nh0001]

Who would've thought 23 years later, Apple would be worth $2 trillion, amazing.

[@greaterbayareahero1401]

It just shows you that once you are working with one of the best it brings you up to a level one cannot imagine. Therefore strive to work with the best.

[@dcoopr]

This is the real motivational video !! Not just some speeches

[@videocat1366]

For someone who could be such a jerk, he had an uncanny ability to NOT take things personally. It was all about what was best to move the company forward and provide the customer with the best possible experience. He was a very unique person.

[@MM-dw4ew]

Oh but he did take things personally, always. He just kept it cool in public

[@0neo]

@@MM-dw4ew Not really, if you read his biography and Apple's history. You will find that he didn't care about revenge or destroying people that crossed him. When he didn't like you he would remove you from his company/life and that's it. If he was so hateful he would have NEVER came back to Apple in 1997, he would have laughed watching the board that fired him fail.

[@khumkmunk2844]

@@0neo Didnt he "fire" the whole board tho? I mean they "stepped down" but yknow....

[@0neo]

@@khumkmunk2844 yes, but it was only because they sucked as a board. If they were good he would have mantained them. 90s apple board sucked, you can even argue that they were the real reason that apple almost went bust and not the CEOs

[@zamzamxiv]

@@khumkmunk2844yeah and look what happened, he pulled apple out of the mud

[@patrickwall7103]

This guy was the best Enterpreniur ever!

[@paulerdosdaughter]

why

[@YoungDen]

He started the company then got fired from the company and can back and built it to what it is today.

[@paulerdosdaughter]

how is that great in your world ?

[@danielx40]

also, an entrepreneur..

[@Qasibr]

Elon Musk.

[@bobobandy9382]

Next time, maybe include the questions and the rest of the interview. Great work, CNBC!

[@shahilagh]

He seems happy and can’t control his excitement but he tries hard to hide some Part of his extreme Happiness. Such a passionate person! Obviously he should be ! Apple was his baby

[@AdityaSharma-nn9fx]

He's very inspiring!

[@raheeb1]

“I really do hope I can help turn the company around...” exactly 21 years later (October 2018) AAPL has a market cap that exceeds ONE TRILLION. And first one to do it in history. 🎤 ⬇️

[@laythabdulkareem1887]

one of the most amazing and useful interviews that I watched for Steve Jobs!

[@WalusansaMafumu-zx6oq]

I'm profoundly in cherish with Steve's intellectualism, where would the world be with his presence?

[@dissturbbed]

Goals of a CEO nowadays is about me myself and I.

[@urosgorjan9527]

Wery interesting person indeed. Talking with him was probably very interesting and productive. It's a sad that he is no longer with us.

[@saskiavanhoutert3190]

Steve Jobs a warm person with a lovely family and strong knowledge about computerizing, kind regards.

[@pitsanulok6620]

Having watched quite a few of his videos, I have to say Steve's thinking is compelling. His commitment commands respect. You can tell his passion. I find the expression on his face at 4:47 interesting. As if he was consciously restraining his passion. I imagine his experience might have taught him, and people who cared about and worked with him may have told him to restrict his feelings of wanting to convey his passion in order not to offend some of his listeners. In Steve's later public appearances such as the Stanford commencement address and also the D8 interview, he seems more settled in the sense of being at peace with himself and his listeners. This is especially impressive to me. The way we grow as we put on years.

[@supersmashmaster43]

Crazy that in the 14 years he had left, he introduced the world to the iPod, iPhone and iPad. All devices that changed the world.

[@korouiromcha8211]

He is real inspiration for me.

[@patrickwall7103]

And CEO a great visión!

[@MildMisanthropeMaybeMassive]

He aged 20 years from 1991 to 1997.

[@bharathgauribidanur7262]

It's so true that people who are so good want to work with people who are as good as them or better than them. I'm one of them.

[@faisalalmansour9090]

"I didn't know this was People Magazine" lol

[@peterkogl1329]

God bless you man!

[@lovewinter5321]

The person who truly changed the world

[@alexandermanuel6460]

Alex Manuel mr Steve Jobs u are genuine. that so real

[@johnnyyash1130]

Steve saw things that others couldn't.

[@socialsaving]

Economic genius

[@lbch_youtube]

appleharmedme.blogspot.com I feel sad. Apple is not really Apple anymore. They're more of a criminal gang.

[@Th3L0st0ne]

wish you had remained here longer, steve

[@struki84]

4 years later came the ipod, and the rest, as they say, is history :) It's awesome to revisit this interviews knowing what he's talking about. I remember back in the day after he came back to apple, late 90's, again, everyone thought he was nuts, saying apple is dead, about to bankrupt, and then 2001, BAM! ipod, and a big f*king "told ya!" from Jobs. But even then a lot of ppl was discrediting what he was doing, only a few ppl figured out something big was cooking. I remember getting my first ipod Classic, thinking, "fml this is 10 years ahead of everyone else". Anyone who understood computer electronics was immediately blown away with the battery span life, hdd movement suspension, the interface, and the screen resolution. And right there were all the components carefully tested on the market. I was holding the next generation of mobile phone in my hand without even noticing. Iphone came out, smart phone vas defined and Apple became the biggest company today. Looking that road just slightly hinted in this interview, and understanding it's mostly by design, is exactly the genius of Jobs and the ppl of Apple.

[@coldacre]

dont forget the iMac in 1998. that literally saved Apple.

[@TalentTrippers]

Do the right things on the topline, the bottom line will follow.

[@joeri9398]

Lota Elisha when I was reading this, he was just saying it

[@naireetdas9038]

JOERI omg!! this is also happened to me!!!

[@tripsmarketinggroup]

Ben G lol God bless that genius

[@hodgeknobbler9848]

Love it.

[@justapple1763]

Legend !!!! :)

[@advertisemedia1509]

So clear, humor, genius

[@opportunityinchina9871]

Such a classic business story.

[@Peter-wp5vb]

You can see that his brain operates at a very high level

[@satanexposed7373]

i cant see his brain

[@wifine1951]

He’s the one who made the iPhone and is responsible for everything you see today in people’s pocket

[@yooochoob]

He’s dead

[@Arnieman1993]

"I don't feel my job is to win a popularity contest right now, I feel my job is to help the team at Apple do the right things..."

[@superviewer]

He knew already he wanted the CEO spot :D Steve would be so proud hearing the reviews of the M1 machines.

[@prashanthb6521]

Man of Passion.

[@hathairatyarin4832]

I have to say thank you for your step parents for your friends for your lover for your child and for your parents. They love you a lot.

[@nagabushanterli5714]

idea of great visionary@ Apple Steve Jobs

[@golden1314]

The man who sparked the smart phone industry in our timeline of the universe.

[@BeatSyncBytes]

He is the best speaker ever

[@redfield1007]

No Scott Steiner is the best speaker ever.

[@pornhubchairman7]

*Takes a deep breath*

[@bhoopendrasingh9280]

Great man

[@pouluathuigonmei6686]

Great man !

[@ahmedb2559]

thank you

[@matthewomalley-qh1pc]

Always great to see Mr. Steve Jobs. 😈

[@dhruvit2408]

Great man🙌🙌🙏🙏

[@happyicare5053]

He was amazing

[@menoa2647]

I was 4 months old when this interview happened.Yes I'm old now yall are 2000 generations that still watching snobgbob

[@epereyralucena]

Boy did he nail it

[@kubricksghost6058]

Steve was truly in his element in 1997. It's as through the stars aligned for him and he got a 2nd shot at Apple.

[@BjrnOttoVasbottenbjovas]

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

[@user-qx9qh7go6z]

Steve Jobs alive in our hearts

[@ddr4ig]

One of a kind...

[@camcappe353]

He says "were really happy about powerpc" fast foward to 2005 and he said in a key note "powerpc was never my idea it was already there when i came back at apple." and switched to intel.

[@jpcarigma]

visionary