Wozniak Steve (Stephen G. Woznyak)

Steve G. Woznyak, along with Steve Jobs, is the founder of Apple. Also known as The WoZ (derived from the surname) and Another Steve (another Steve). Born August 11, 1950 in the city of San Jose (California, USA). In fact, he is one of the developers of the first personal computer. His inventions and ideas can be considered an invaluable contribution to the development of computing systems. Steve Wozniak created the Apple I and Apple II personal computers, which gained extraordinary popularity among users of the time.

Biography

1976-1980

With his school companion Steve Jobs, Wozniak organizes a PC manufacturing and assembly company - this happened on April 1, 1976.

In 1980, the Apple II computer, which went on sale, made Wozniak and Jobs millionaires.

1981: Plane crash

Piloting a small plane in 1981, Wozniak was involved in a plane crash. Due to the accident, he developed retrograde and temporary atherograde amnesia. In accordance with this fact, the fuss was forced to leave Apple. Nevertheless, in 1983 he returned back and managed to work for another two years, after which he created his own company for the development of remote control tools for household use - in other words, remote controls. His firm CL-9 existed until 1989. During this time, Wozniak managed to graduate from the University of Berkeley, which he did not have time to do during the formation of the Apple empire, and receive a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and IT. Moreover, today Steve Wozniak lectures on a voluntary basis to fifth-year students.

2008

Steve Wozniak on Apple's early years, 2008

2018

Sale of all bitcoins

In January 2018, speaking at the Nordic Business Forum  in Stockholm, Steve Wozniak said that he had sold all the bitcoins he had previously bought. The Apple co-founder decided to get rid of the cryptocurrency because he said he didn't want to be nervous watching the change in course.

According to Wozniak, he acquired bitcoins in the summer of 2017, when their price was $700 per unit. The businessman did not specify the size of the purchase and only added that he decided to purchase digital currency as an experiment.

I wanted to visit places like Stockholm and find restaurants and hotels that accept only bitcoins. I wanted to pay only with bitcoins on my journey, - said Steve Wozniak.

Soon the bitcoin rate began to grow, and when it reached almost $20 thousand, Wozniak decided to sell all the crypto savings.

I don't want to be one of those who constantly monitors them and is only worried about the price, "Wozniak said. - For me, the lack of cause for concern is an important part of a happy life, so I sold everything and got rid of them.

During his speech at the Nordic Business Forum, the engineer also noted that he was never interested in money  or engaged in stock trading.

In October 2017, at a conference, Money20/20 Steve Wozniak said that he "admires" bitcoin and considers it a potentially better means of storing savings than gold or American dollars.

Gold is mined and new deposits and methods of its extraction are constantly being found. Bitcoin is part of mathematical operations, and no one can change mathematics, "he said.

According to Wozniak, a limited number of bitcoins is a big plus of this cryptocurrency, while money issued by the state, as well as precious metals, cannot boast of this.^[1]

Theft of 7 bitcoins

In February 2018, Steve Wozniak said that unknown scammers stole bitcoins from him. The Apple co-founder could not return the stolen funds due to the peculiarities of cryptocurrencies and the use of stolen credit cards.

Blockchain shows who has bitcoins, but this does not mean that the risk of fraud is excluded. I had seven bitcoins that were stolen by scammers. Someone bought them from me online and paid on a credit card, and then canceled the payment. It was so simple. They used the stolen card, so they could not get the money back, "Steve Wozniak said during his speech at the Global Business Summit forum in New Delhi (India).

At the time of Wozniak's statement, seven bitcoins cost approximately $74 thousand. At some point in time, the cost of this cryptocurrency reached $20 thousand. In this case, Wozniak's lost profit could be measured at $140 thousand. True, at one time he bought bitcoins for $700 apiece.

Canceling a bitcoin transaction is often impossible, and only the recipient can refund the amount. In the case of credit cards, holders have the right to dispute the transaction, for example, if there is confidence that the transaction was never completed. However, when operating with a stolen card, it is almost pointless to demand a refund.

According to Wozniak, the advantage of bitcoin is that this cryptocurrency is "not managed by governments," is "mathematical and pure" and "cannot be changed."

The businessman warned that the blockchain that identifies cryptocurrency owners does not guarantee protection against theft or fraud. At the same time, he bought anyway, and then sold bitcoin.^[2]

Apple's co-founder has changed his mind more than once about modern technology and new products. So, earlier he feared that cars would deprive people of work, but then he realized that artificial intelligence was significantly lagging behind humans in development.

Comparing Apple to Ethereum

In May 2018, Steve Wozniak compared the Ethereum blockchain platform to Apple and stated that the technology could repeat the revolutionary path of the American corporation. Read more here.

2021

The opening of the space company Privateer Space

September 13, 2021 it became known about the creation of a private space company Privateer Space. This is a joint project between Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Ripcord robotics chief executive Alex Fielding. Read more here.

2023: Obtaining a Serbian passport

On December 6, 2023, President Serbia Aleksandar Vucic announced that co-founder Apple Steve Wozniak and his wife Janet would receive Serbian passports. Wozniak, 73, said it was a "great joy" for him to become a Serbian citizen.

As of late 2023, Wozniak, who is often referred to under the pseudonym Woz (Woz or The Woz), lives with his wife in Los Gatos, in. He has California three adult children and five grandchildren. After obtaining a Serbian passport, the co-founder of Apple will be able to carry out visa-free travel to the countries of the European Union, as well as to, and Russia China others. states

I'm a Serb who lives in America and that's what I want to be. I want to promote the interests of Serbia until the end of my life, - said Wozniak, commenting on obtaining Serbian citizenship.

In November 2023, Apple's co-founder suffered a stroke during a trip to Mexico City. The businessman complained of dizziness and wobbling while walking, after which he was hospitalized. Doctors diagnosed him with a violation of the blood supply to the brain. Soon after, Wozniak was discharged from the hospital and returned to the United States. And in early December 2023, he arrived in Serbia - on the eve of early parliamentary elections. Alexander Vucic noted that at a meeting with Wozniak at the presidential residence, among other things, the development of the education system in Serbia was discussed. The head of state stressed that the American businessman had previously taken part in many Serbian charity projects designed to help children get an education.

Now we can proudly say that a computer genius is a Serb, "Vucic said at a press conference in Belgrade, stressing that it is an honor for Serbia to transfer passports to Wozniak and his wife.[3]

State

Apple founder's home up for sale

In March 2013, a Los Gatos home previously owned by Apple founder Steve Wozniak was put up for sale again, SFGate reported. The house has six bedrooms and six bathrooms, the building was built specifically for Wozniak according to the author's design in 1986. The home is 7.5 thousand square feet and the site is 1.19 acres.

The house has already changed ownership several times, but still retains the charm of its state-of-the-art design. Those who own the house at the moment initially put it up for sale at the end of 2012 at a price of $5 million, but could not find buyers. Making a new attempt to sell the building, they set a lower price - $4.395 million.

There are plenty of other interesting details in the house. For example, a huge outdoor pool, as well as a spacious play area for children. The home is perfectly designed to use natural light, for example, the kitchen area has a transparent insert right in the roof dome, and one of the bedrooms is a full-wall window overlooking the surrounding park.

Los Gatos is a small town in Santa Clara, California, United States. The population of the city was about 30 thousand people in 2010. The town is near Silicon Valley. The cost of real estate in the city ranges from $1 million in downtown to $15-30 million in the center.

Family

Wozniak lives in Los Gatos (California, USA) with his wife Janet Hill.

Quotes

• As the "number one gadget," the iPod has already lived a long life. If you look into the past, you will see that transistor radios and the first players (literally: Walkmans) died out after a while. This is a thing of that type that appears in one person in two or three copies, which inevitably leads to cheaper and lower sales.

• Do not trust a computer that cannot be thrown out of the window.

Interesting facts

• Wozniak's roots are Polish. In this regard, his real name reads neither Stephen, but rather Stefan.

• Steve Wozniak is a member of the Silicon Valley polo team.

• Wozniak's favorite game is Tetris.

• One of Wozniak's quotes ("Do not trust a computer that cannot be thrown out of the window") can be found in the computer game Civilization IV in single-player mode.

• On March 9, 2009, the premiere of the next show "Dancing with the Stars" took place (there is an analogue on Russian television - "Dancing with the Stars"). Along with Denise Richards, Belinda Carlisle, Lil Kim and Steve-O, Steve Wozniak also performed. His partner was Karina Smirnoff, a professional dancer originally from Kharkov (Ukraine).

• Wozniak dated actress Kathy Griffin for some time, and repeatedly appeared in the series "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List." In June 2008, Katie on the Howard Stern Show officially stated that she and Steve were no longer a couple.

• Wozniak voiced the character of the first series of the animated series "Code Monkeys" about game developers, which depicted Steve's parody of himself. He also participated in the recording of the 12th series in the same capacity.

• Together with his good friend Steve Jobs, he improved John Draper's fricker technique and designed the Blue Box, a device capable of reproducing signals at frequencies that are necessary to "trick" the telephone system and make free calls. According to some reports, colleagues not only sold "blue boxes," but also had fun through international calls - in particular, they called the Pope on behalf of Henry Kissenger.

Links

Steve Wozniak's official website

Recording Wozniak's first performance on "Dancing with the Stars"

Wozniak's interview with the creators of the series "Code Monkeys"