View source for Steve Wozniak

{{Short description|American electrical engineer and programmer (born 1950)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Steve Wozniak
| image              = Steve Wozniak by Gage Skidmore 3 (cropped).jpg
| caption            = Wozniak in 2017
| birth_name         = Stephen Gary Wozniak
| birth_date         = {{birth date and age|1950|8|11}}
| birth_place        = [[San Jose, California]], U.S.
| citizenship        = United States<br>Poland<br>Serbia
| alias              = {{plainlist|
* Woz
* Berkeley Blue (hacking alias)<ref name=slate.com>{{cite web |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/books/2013/02/steve_jobs_and_phone_hacking_exploding_the_phone_by_phil_lapsley_reviewed.html |title=Phreaks and Geeks |last=Dayal |first=Geeta |date=February 1, 2013 |website=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=December 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181212215650/http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/books/2013/02/steve_jobs_and_phone_hacking_exploding_the_phone_by_phil_lapsley_reviewed.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* Rocky Clark (student alias)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-14-vw-5389-story.html |title=A UC Berkeley Degree Is Now the Apple of Steve Wozniak's Eye |last=Stix |first=Harriet |date=May 14, 1986 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=April 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402185346/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-14-vw-5389-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| education          = [[University of Colorado Boulder]] (expelled)<br>[[De Anza College]]<br>[[University of California, Berkeley]] ([[Bachelor of Engineering|BSE]])<ref name=wozorg/>
| occupation         = {{hlist|Entrepreneur|electrical engineer|programmer|inventor|philanthropist|investor}}
| known_for          = {{indented plainlist|
* Pioneer of the [[personal computer revolution]] with [[Steve Jobs]]
* Co-founder of [[Apple Inc.]]
* [[Apple I]] creator
* [[Apple II (1977 computer)|Apple II]] co-creator and lead developer
* [[Macintosh]] co-creator and co-developer}}
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Alice Robertson|1976|1980|reason=divorce}}
* {{marriage|[[Candice Clark]]|1981|1987|reason=divorce}}
* {{marriage|Suzanne Mulkern|1990|2004|reason=divorce}}
* {{marriage|Janet Hill|2008}}}}
| years_active       = 1971–present
| children           = 3
| callsign           = ex-WA6BND (ex-WV6VLY)
| website            = {{URL|woz.org}}
}}

'''Stephen Gary Wozniak''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|w|ɒ|z|n|i|æ|k}}; born August 11, 1950), also known by his nickname '''Woz''', is an American technology entrepreneur, [[electrical engineer]], [[computer programmer]], [[philanthropist]], and inventor. In 1976, he co-founded [[Apple Inc.|Apple Computer]] with his early business partner [[Steve Jobs]]. Through his work at Apple in the 1970s and 1980s, he is widely recognized as one of the most prominent pioneers of the [[personal computer revolution]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=McConnell |first=Steve |date=December 7, 2018 |title=Steve Wozniak: Inventor and Apple co-founder |url=https://engineering.berkeley.edu/steve-wozniak-inventor-and-apple-co-founder/ |access-date=September 4, 2022 |website=Berkeley Engineering |language=en-US |archive-date=August 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802192606/https://engineering.berkeley.edu/steve-wozniak-inventor-and-apple-co-founder/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1975, Wozniak started developing the [[Apple I|Apple&nbsp;I]]<ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|page=150|quote=After my first meeting, I started designing the computer that would later be known as the Apple I. It was that inspiring.}} into the computer that launched Apple when he and Jobs first began marketing it the following year. He was the primary designer of the [[Apple II (1977 computer)|Apple II]], introduced in 1977, known as one of the first highly successful mass-produced [[microcomputer]]s,<ref>{{cite web |last=Reimer |first=Jeremy |url=https://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/total-share.ars/3 |title=Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures |website=[[Ars Technica]] |date=December 14, 2005 |access-date=May 22, 2017 |archive-date=December 4, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204091105/http://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/total-share.ars/3 |url-status=live }}</ref> while Jobs oversaw the development of its foam-molded plastic case and early Apple employee [[Rod Holt]] developed its [[switched-mode power supply|switching power supply]].{{fact|date=July 2025}}

With [[human–computer interface]] expert [[Jef Raskin]], Wozniak had a major influence over the initial development of the original [[Macintosh 128K| Macintosh]] concepts from 1979 to 1981, when Jobs took over the project following Wozniak's brief departure from the company due to a traumatic airplane accident.<ref name=TheVerge/><ref name=wozorg>{{cite web |url=http://www.woz.org/about |publisher=Woz.org |title=About Steve Wozniak aka 'The Woz' |access-date=March 19, 2017 |archive-date=May 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506213836/http://www.woz.org/about |url-status=live }}</ref> After permanently leaving Apple in 1985, Wozniak founded [[CL 9]] and created the first programmable [[universal remote]], released in 1987. He then pursued several other businesses and philanthropic ventures throughout his career, focusing largely on technology in [[K–12]] schools.<ref name=wozorg/>

As of June 2024, Wozniak has remained an employee of Apple in a ceremonial capacity since stepping down in 1985.<ref name="wozemployee"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=February 6, 2020 |title=Woz says he's still an Apple employee, paid 'about $50 a week' |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/02/06/steve-wozniak-says-big-money-changed-steve-jobs-personality-in-apples-early-days |access-date=November 4, 2022 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US |archive-date=October 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005201205/https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/02/06/steve-wozniak-says-big-money-changed-steve-jobs-personality-in-apples-early-days/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In recent years, he has helped fund multiple entrepreneurial efforts dealing in areas such as [[Global Positioning System|GPS]] and [[telecommunications]], [[flash memory]], technology and pop culture conventions, technical education, [[ecology]], [[satellite]]s and more.

==Early life==
[[File:Steve Wozniak in 1968 Pegasus.jpg|thumb|upright|Wozniak's 1968 [[Homestead High School (Cupertino, California)|Homestead High School]] yearbook photo]]
<!-- Note: Citations after each clause in this paragraph for verifiability, because editors/vandals keep inserting unsourced claims into the middle, making it harder to review when citations are bunched up at the end of sentences. -->
Stephen Gary Wozniak was born on August 11, 1950, in [[San Jose, California]].<ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|page=18}}<ref name=biography.com>{{cite web|title=Steve Wozniak|url=http://www.biography.com/people/steve-wozniak-9537334|publisher=Biography.com|access-date=July 4, 2016|archive-date=July 3, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160703014405/http://www.biography.com/people/steve-wozniak-9537334|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Wizard">{{cite book |title=Steve Wozniak: A Wizard Called Woz |url=https://archive.org/details/stevewozniakwiza00gold |url-access=registration |author=Rebecca Gold |publisher=Lerner |date=1994 |isbn=9780822528814 }}</ref>{{rp|page=13}}<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|page=27}} His mother, Margaret Louise Wozniak (née Kern) (1923–2014), was from [[Washington (state)|Washington state]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 6, 2014 |title=Margaret Wozniak, mother of Apple's co-founder, dead at 91 |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2014/08/06/margaret-wozniak-mother-of-apples-co-founder-dead-at-91/ |access-date=November 4, 2022 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US |archive-date=December 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222033512/https://www.mercurynews.com/2014/08/06/margaret-wozniak-mother-of-apples-co-founder-dead-at-91/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and his father, Francis Jacob "Jerry" Wozniak (1925–1994) of [[Michigan]],<ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|page=18}} was an engineer for the [[Lockheed Corporation]].<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|page=1}} Wozniak graduated from [[Homestead High School (Cupertino, California)|Homestead High School]] in 1968, in [[Cupertino, California]].<ref name="Wizard"/>{{rp|page=25}} Steve has one brother, Mark,<ref name="mace19840730">{{Cite magazine |last=Mace |first=Scott |date=1984-07-30 |title=Inside the Apple IIc |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dy8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA39#v=onepage&q&f=true |access-date=2025-06-06 |magazine=InfoWorld |pages=39-41 |volume=6 |issue=31}}</ref> a former tech executive who lives in Menlo Park. He also has one sister, Leslie, who attended Homestead High School in Cupertino. She is a grant adviser at Five Bridges Foundation, which helps at-risk youths in San Francisco. Leslie said it was her mother who introduced activism to her and her siblings.<ref>{{Cite web|date=February 19, 2017|title=Steve Wozniak Family - Parents, Wife, Children, Siblings|url=https://www.celebfamily.org/steve-wozniak|access-date=November 1, 2021|website=CelebFamily|language=en-US|archive-date=November 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101205127/https://www.celebfamily.org/steve-wozniak|url-status=live}}</ref>

<!-- Note: Citations after each clause in this paragraph for verifiability, because editors/vandals keep inserting unsourced claims into the middle, making it harder to review when citations are bunched up at the end of sentences. -->
The name on Wozniak's birth certificate is "Stephan Gary Wozniak", but his mother said that she intended it to be spelled "Stephen", which is what he uses.<ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|page=18}} Wozniak is of [[Poland|Polish]] and [[Germany|German]] ancestry.<ref>{{cite web |last= Wozniak|first= Steve|title= Letters-General Questions Answered |url= http://www.woz.org|website= Woz.org|location= |publisher= |url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150625205134/http://archive.woz.org/letters/general/63.html#expand |archive-date = June 25,  2015 |access-date= April 6, 2025 |quote= My mother's family came from Germany. My father's family came from Poland. I think this is accurate. Either family might have come from the other country, or near the border.}}</ref> In the early 1970s, Wozniak's [[blue box]] design earned him the nickname "Berkeley Blue" in the [[phreaking]] community.<ref name=slate.com/><ref>{{cite news |last=Lapsley |first=Phil |url=http://www.salon.com/2013/02/16/from_phreaks_to_apple_steve_jobs_and_steve_wozniaks_eureka_moment/ |title=From "phreaks" to Apple: Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak's "eureka!" moment |work=[[Salon.com]] |date=February 16, 2013 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |archive-date=November 1, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101070439/http://www.salon.com/2013/02/16/from_phreaks_to_apple_steve_jobs_and_steve_wozniaks_eureka_moment/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Wozniak has credited watching ''[[Star Trek]]'' and attending [[Star Trek convention|''Star Trek'' conventions]] while in his youth as a source of inspiration for his starting [[Apple Inc.|Apple Computer]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hasan |first1=Zaki |title=Interview: Steve Wozniak on Sci-Fi, Comic Books, and How Star Trek Shaped the Future |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/interview-steve-wozniak-on-sci-fi-comic-books-and_b_58f7e86de4b081380af51897 |website=HuffPost |access-date=October 19, 2021 |date=April 19, 2017 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612031533/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/interview-steve-wozniak-on-sci-fi-comic-books-and_us_58f7e86de4b081380af51897 |url-status=live }}</ref> In his autobiography, ''[[iWoz]]'', he also credits the [[Tom Swift Jr.]] books as an inspiration for becoming an engineer.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nitrozac |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sNyHOckYp5oC&dq=%E2%80%9Cthat+engineers+can+save+the+world+from+all+sorts+of+conflict+and+evil%E2%80%9D&pg=PP1 |title=The Best of the Joy of Tech |last2=Snaggy |date=2003 |publisher="O'Reilly Media, Inc." |isbn=978-0-596-00578-8 |edition= |at=Foreword |language=en}}</ref>

==Career==
===Pre-Apple===
{{See also|History of Apple#1971–1985: Jobs and Wozniak}}
In 1969, Wozniak returned to the [[San Francisco Bay Area]] after being expelled from the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] in his first year for hacking the university's computer system.<ref name=CUIndependent /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.colorado.edu/chancellor/2016/02/24/chancellor |title=From the Chancellor - Office of the Chancellor |date=February 24, 2016 |publisher=[[University of Colorado Boulder]] |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-date=March 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312051811/http://www.colorado.edu/chancellor/2016/02/24/chancellor |url-status=live }}</ref> He re-enrolled at [[De Anza College]] in Cupertino before transferring to the [[University of California, Berkeley]], in 1971.<ref name="Apple Confidential" />{{rp|page=1}} In June of that year, for a self-taught engineering project, Wozniak designed and built his first computer with his friend [[Bill Fernandez]].<ref name="Apple Confidential" />{{rp|page=1}} 

Predating useful microprocessors, screens, and keyboards, and using [[punch card]]s and only 20 [[Transistor–transistor logic|TTL]] chips donated by an acquaintance, they named it "Cream Soda" after their [[cream soda|favorite beverage]]. A newspaper reporter stepped on the power supply cable and blew up the computer, but it served Wozniak as "a good prelude to my thinking 5 years later with the Apple I and Apple II computers".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://emberify.com/blog/cream-soda-the-first-computer/|title=Cream soda – The first computer|date=October 1, 2014|work=emberify.com|access-date=February 27, 2017|archive-date=February 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228083237/http://emberify.com/blog/cream-soda-the-first-computer/|url-status=live}}</ref> Before focusing his attention on Apple, he was employed at [[Hewlett-Packard]] (HP), where he designed calculators.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMRmG72LBU8 | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/UMRmG72LBU8| archive-date=October 28, 2021|title=Steve Wozniak Talks About HP |website=[[YouTube]] |access-date=November 22, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It was during this time that he dropped out of Berkeley and befriended [[Steve Jobs]].<ref name=Jobs&Woz>{{cite web |url=http://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/steve-jobs-steve-wozniak |title=Steve Jobs & Steve Wozniak |website=[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] |publisher=[[Lemelson Foundation]] |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=September 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903231200/http://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/steve-jobs-steve-wozniak |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=" ABCnews" />

Wozniak was introduced to Jobs by Fernandez, who attended [[Homestead High School (Cupertino, California)|Homestead High School]] with Jobs in 1971. Jobs and Wozniak became friends when Jobs worked for the summer at HP, where Wozniak, too, was employed, working on a [[mainframe computer]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Jefferey S.|title=Steve Jobs: The Journey is the Reward.|date=December 1988|publisher=Lynx Books|isbn=155802378X}}</ref>
{{blockquote|We first met in 1971 during my college years, while he was in high school. A friend said, 'you should meet Steve Jobs because he likes electronics, and he also plays pranks.' So he introduced us.|source=Steve Wozniak<ref name=ABCnews>{{cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/PCWorld/story?id=3396207 |title=Three Minutes With Steve Wozniak |publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |date=July 20, 2007 |access-date=November 10, 2013 |archive-date=November 10, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110220223/http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/PCWorld/story?id=3396207 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

[[file:Blue Box in museum.jpg|thumb|Steve Wozniak's [[blue box]] at the [[Computer History Museum]]]]
Their first business partnership began later that year when Wozniak read an article titled "Secrets of the Little Blue Box" from the October 1971 issue of ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'', and started to build his own "[[blue box]]es" that enabled one to make long-distance [[Phreaking|phone calls at no cost]].<ref>{{Cite book |first=Walter |last=Isaacson |year=2011 |title=Steve Jobs |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=9781451648546 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/stevejobs00isaa }} pp. 27–29</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a38878/steve-jobs-steve-wozniak-blue-box-phone-phreaking/ |title=How Blue Box Phone Phreaking Put Steve Jobs and Woz on the Road to Apple |work=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]] |date=October 15, 2015 |access-date=November 26, 2019 |archive-date=December 16, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216111546/http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a38878/steve-jobs-steve-wozniak-blue-box-phone-phreaking/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Jobs, who handled the sales of the blue boxes, managed to sell some two hundred of them for $150 each, and split the profit with Wozniak.{{sfn|Linzmayer|2004|pages=1–2}}{{sfn|O'Grady|2009|pages=1–2}} Jobs later told his biographer that if it had not been for Wozniak's blue boxes, "there wouldn't have been an Apple."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Isaacson |first=Walter |title=Steve Jobs |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=2015 |isbn=9781501127625|p=30}}</ref>

In 1973, Jobs was working for [[arcade game]] company [[Atari, Inc.]] in [[Los Gatos, California]].<ref name="intoday1">{{cite magazine|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/india-visit-gave-a-vision-to-steve-jobs/1/154785.html |title=An exclusive interview with Daniel Kottke|magazine=[[India Today]]|date=September 13, 2011 |access-date=October 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073007/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/india-visit-gave-a-vision-to-steve-jobs/1/154785.html |archive-date=March 4, 2016}}</ref> He was assigned to create a [[Printed circuit board|circuit board]] for the arcade video game ''[[Breakout (video game)|Breakout]]''. According to Atari co-founder [[Nolan Bushnell]], Atari offered $100 ({{Inflation|US|100|1973|fmt=eq}}) for each chip that was eliminated in the machine. Jobs had little knowledge of circuit board design and made a deal with Wozniak to split the fee evenly between them if Wozniak could minimize the number of chips. Wozniak reduced the number of chips by 50, by using [[Random-access memory|RAM]] for the brick representation. The fact that this prototype had no scoring or coin mechanisms meant Woz's prototype could not be used. Jobs was paid the full bonus regardless. Jobs told Wozniak that Atari gave them only $700 and that Wozniak's share was thus $350 ({{Inflation|US|350|1973|fmt=eq|r=-2}}).<ref name="breakout">{{cite web |url=http://www.woz.org/letters/general/91.html |title=Letters&nbsp;– General Questions Answered |access-date=June 20, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612071502/http://www.woz.org/letters/general/91.html |archive-date=June 12, 2011 }}, Woz.org<br />[[Steven L. Kent|Kent, Steven]]: "[[The Ultimate History of Video Games]]", pp. 71–73. Three Rivers, 2001. {{ISBN|0-7615-3643-4}}<br />{{cite web|url=http://www.arcade-history.com/index.php?page=detail&id=3397|title=Breakout|publisher=Arcade History|date=June 25, 2002|access-date=April 19, 2010|archive-date=January 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105140543/http://www.arcade-history.com/index.php?page=detail&id=3397|url-status=live}}<br />{{cite web|url=http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=395|title=Classic Gaming: A Complete History of Breakout|publisher=GameSpy|access-date=April 19, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130813113450/http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=395|archive-date=August 13, 2013}}</ref><ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|pages=147–148, 180}} Wozniak did not learn about the actual $5,000 bonus ({{Inflation|US|5000|1973|fmt=eq|r=-2}}) until ten years later. While dismayed, he said that if Jobs had told him about it and had said he needed the money, Wozniak would have given it to him.<ref name=Isaacson>{{cite book|last=Isaacson|first=Walter|author-link=Walter Isaacson|title=Steve Jobs |year=2011 |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|location=New York, NY|isbn=978-1-4516-4853-9 |title-link=Steve Jobs (book)}}</ref>{{rp|pages=104–107}}

In 1975, Wozniak began designing and developing the computer that would eventually make him famous, the [[Apple I]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Steidler-Dennison|first=Tony|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2buADxl3M9sC&q=wozniak+designed+apple+1+1975&pg=PA6|title=Mac for Linux Geeks|date=March 24, 2009|publisher=Apress|isbn=978-1-4302-1651-3|language=en|access-date=November 21, 2020|archive-date=March 1, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301054845/https://books.google.com/books?id=2buADxl3M9sC&q=wozniak+designed+apple+1+1975&pg=PA6|url-status=live}}</ref> With the Apple I, Wozniak was largely working to impress other members of the [[Palo Alto, California|Palo Alto]]–based [[Homebrew Computer Club]],<ref name="becomingsj"/>{{rp|pages=35–38}} a local group of electronics hobbyists interested in computing. The club was one of several key centers which established the home hobbyist era, essentially creating the microcomputer industry over the next few decades. Unlike other custom Homebrew designs, the Apple had an easy-to-achieve video capability that drew a crowd when it was unveiled.<ref name="FireValley" />

===Apple formation and success===
{{blockquote | Wozniak designed Apple's first products, the Apple I and II computers and he helped design the Macintosh — because he wanted to use them and they didn't exist.|source= CNBC retrospective<ref name="2 counterintuitive"/>}}
{{blockquote | Between Woz and Jobs, Woz was the innovator, the inventor. Steve Jobs was the marketing person.|source= Apple employee #12 [[Daniel Kottke]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://boingboing.net/2012/08/09/kottke.html |title=Searching for Magic in India and Silicon Valley: An Interview with Daniel Kottke, Apple Employee #12 |date=August 9, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140111073600/http://boingboing.net/2012/08/09/kottke.html |archive-date=January 11, 2014 |access-date=November 16, 2019}}</ref>}}
{{blockquote | Everything I did at Apple that was an A+ job and that took us places, I had two things in my favor&nbsp;... I had no money [and] I had had no training.|source= Steve Wozniak in 2010<ref name="2 counterintuitive">{{cite web | title=Steve Wozniak: 2 counterintuitive reasons I was able to build 'A+' products when Apple first started | date=May 14, 2019 | first=Catherine | last=Clifford | work=CNBC | url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/14/steve-wozniak-why-i-was-able-to-build-a-apple-products.html | access-date=July 18, 2019 | archive-date=June 3, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603025120/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/14/steve-wozniak-why-i-was-able-to-build-a-apple-products.html | url-status=live }}</ref>}}
[[File:Original 1976 Apple 1 Computer In A Briefcase.JPG|thumb|An original 1976 [[Apple I]] computer in a briefcase, from the [[Sydney Powerhouse Museum]] collection]]
By March 1, 1976, Wozniak completed the basic design of the Apple I computer.<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|pages=5–6}} He alone designed the hardware, circuit board designs, and operating system for the computer.<ref name="FireValley">{{cite book |title=Fire in the Valley |first1=Paul |last1=Freiberger |author-link1=Paul Freiberger |last2=Swaine |first2=Michael |author-link2=Michael Swaine (technical author) |year=2000 |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]] |isbn=0-07-135892-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/fireinvalleymaki00frei_0 }}</ref> Wozniak originally offered the design to [[Hewlett-Packard|HP]] while working there, but was denied by the company on five occasions.<ref name="AI">{{cite web |url=https://appleinsider.com/articles/10/12/06/apple_co_founder_offered_first_computer_design_to_hp_5_times |title=Apple co-founder offered first computer design to HP 5 times |date=December 7, 2010 |publisher=[[AppleInsider]] |access-date=April 17, 2020 |archive-date=August 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803155301/https://appleinsider.com/articles/10/12/06/apple_co_founder_offered_first_computer_design_to_hp_5_times |url-status=live }}</ref> Jobs then advised Wozniak to start a business of their own to build and sell bare [[printed circuit board]]s of the Apple I.<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|pages=4–6}}<ref name="becomingsj">{{cite book |title=Becoming Steve Jobs: The Evolution of a Reckless Upstart into a Visionary Leader|first1=Brent |last1=Schlender |first2=Rick |last2=Tetzeli|date=2016 |publisher=Crown Business; Reprint edition|isbn=9780385347426}}</ref>{{rp|pages=35–38}} Wozniak, at first skeptical, was later convinced by Jobs that even if they were not successful they could at least say to their grandchildren that they had had their own company. To raise the money they needed to build the first batch of the circuit boards, Wozniak sold his [[HP-65|HP scientific calculator]] while Jobs sold his [[Volkswagen Type 2|Volkswagen van]].<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|pages=4–6}}<ref name="becomingsj"/>{{rp|pages=35–38}}

On April 1, 1976, Jobs and Wozniak formed the Apple Computer Company (now called [[Apple Inc.]]) along with administrative supervisor [[Ronald Wayne]], whose participation in the new venture was short-lived. The two decided on the name "Apple" shortly after Jobs returned from Oregon and told Wozniak about his time spent on an [[apple orchard]] there.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2011/11/how-did-apple-computer-get-its-brand-name.html#.WgCTJhNSyt8 |title=How Did Apple Computer Get Its Brand Name? |work=Branding Strategy Insider |date=November 17, 2011 |access-date=December 25, 2017 |archive-date=July 4, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704125732/https://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2011/11/how-did-apple-computer-get-its-brand-name.html#.WgCTJhNSyt8 |url-status=live }}</ref>

After the company was formed, Jobs and Wozniak made one last trip to the Homebrew Computer Club to give a presentation of the fully assembled version of the Apple I.<ref name="becomingsj"/>{{rp|pages=39–40}} [[Paul Terrell]], who was starting a new computer shop in [[Mountain View, California]], called the [[Byte Shop]],<ref name="iWoz">{{cite book |last1=Wozniak |first1=Steve |title=iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It |title-link=iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-Founded Apple, and Had Fun Doing It |last2=Smith |first2=Gina |author2-link=Gina Smith (author) |publisher=[[W. W. Norton & Company]] |year=2006 |isbn=0-393-06143-4 |oclc=502898652}}</ref> saw the presentation and was impressed by the machine.<ref name=Isaacson />{{rp|pages=66–67}} Terrell told Jobs that he would order 50 units of the Apple I and pay $500 ({{Inflation|US|500|1976|fmt=eq|r=-1}}) each on delivery, but only if they came fully assembled, as he was not interested in buying bare printed circuit boards.<ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|page=7}}<ref name=Isaacson />{{rp|pages=66–67}}

Together the duo assembled the first boards in Jobs's parents' [[Los Altos, California|Los Altos]] home; initially in his bedroom and later (when there was no space left) in the garage. Wozniak's apartment in San Jose was filled with monitors, electronic devices, and computer games that he had developed. The Apple I sold for $666.66. Wozniak later said he had no idea about the relation between the number and the [[Number of the beast|mark of the beast]], and that he came up with the price because he liked "repeating digits".<ref name=VintageNews>{{cite news |first=Goran |last=Blazeski |title=Apple-1, Steve Wozniak's hand-built creation, was Apple's first official product, priced at $666.66 |url=https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/11/25/apples-first-official-product-was-priced-at-666-66/ |website=The Vintage News |date=November 25, 2017 |access-date=November 24, 2019 |archive-date=July 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726090158/https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/11/25/apples-first-official-product-was-priced-at-666-66/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They sold their first 50 system boards to Terrell later that year.{{clarify|date=November 2019}}

{{External media
| width = 210px
|image1 = [https://img.gazeta.ru/files3/725/13190725/upload-upload-04-pic4_zoom-1000x1000-18187-pic4_zoom-1500x1500-65192.jpg Wozniak and Steve Jobs with an Apple I circuit board, c. 1976.]
}}
In November 1976, Jobs and Wozniak received substantial funding from a then-semi-retired [[Intel]] product marketing manager and engineer named [[Mike Markkula]].<ref name="Markkula1997">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/01/business/an-unknown-co-founder-leaves-after-20-years-of-glory-and-turmoil.html |title=An 'Unknown' Co-Founder Leaves After 20 Years of Glory and Turmoil |last=Markoff |first=John |date=September 1, 1997 |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=October 7, 2019 |archive-date=January 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102015839/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/01/business/an-unknown-co-founder-leaves-after-20-years-of-glory-and-turmoil.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Apple Confidential"/>{{rp|page=10}} At the request of Markkula, Wozniak resigned from his job at HP and became the vice president in charge of research and development at Apple. Wozniak's Apple I was similar to the [[Altair 8800]], the first commercially available microcomputer, except the Apple I had no provision for internal expansion cards. With expansion cards, the Altair could attach to a computer terminal and be programmed in [[BASIC]]. In contrast, the Apple I was a hobbyist machine. Wozniak's design included a $25 [[CPU]] ([[MOS Technology 6502|MOS 6502]]) on a single circuit board with 256 [[byte]]s of [[Read-only memory|ROM]], 4K or 8K bytes of [[Random-access memory|RAM]], and a 40-character by 24-row display controller. Apple's first computer lacked a case, power supply, keyboard, and display{{emdash}}all components that had to be provided by the user. Eventually about 200 Apple I computers were produced in total.<ref name="wozniak198412">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-12/1984_12_BYTE_09-13_Communications#page/n461/mode/2up | title=The Apple Story / Part 1: Early History | work=[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]] | date=December 1984 | access-date=November 16, 2019 |author1=Williams, Gregg |author2=Moore, Rob | pages=A67 | type=interview}}</ref>

[[File:Micromodem II in Apple II.jpg|thumb|An [[Apple II]] computer with an external [[modem]]]]
After the success of the Apple I, Wozniak designed the Apple II, the first personal computer with the ability to display color graphics, and BASIC programming language built in.<ref name="iWoz" /> Inspired by "the technique [[Atari]] used to simulate colors on its first [[arcade game]]s", Wozniak found a way of putting colors into the [[NTSC]] system by using a {{US$|1}} chip,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.macstories.net/news/woz-putting-color-in-the-computer-was-one-of-the-biggest-things-apple-ever-did/|title=Woz: Putting Color In The Computer Was One Of The Biggest Things Apple Ever Did|work=macstories.net|date=February 9, 2011 |access-date=September 27, 2014|archive-date=April 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408220809/http://www.macstories.net/news/woz-putting-color-in-the-computer-was-one-of-the-biggest-things-apple-ever-did/|url-status=live}}</ref> while colors in the [[PAL]] system are achieved by "accident" when a dot occurs on a line, and he says that to this day he has no idea how it works.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2012/11/26/steve-wozniak-his-career-challenges-steve-jobs-tech-trends-and-advice/ |title= Steve Wozniak: His Career Challenges, Steve Jobs, Tech Trends and Advice |first= Dan |last= Schawbel |work= [[Forbes (magazine)|Forbes]] |access-date= September 15, 2017 |archive-date= August 4, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170804120249/https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2012/11/26/steve-wozniak-his-career-challenges-steve-jobs-tech-trends-and-advice/ |url-status= live }}</ref> During the design stage, Jobs argued that the Apple II should have two [[expansion slot]]s, while Wozniak wanted eight.<ref name="iWoz" /> After a heated argument, during which Wozniak threatened that Jobs should "go get himself another computer", they decided to go with eight slots. Jobs and Wozniak introduced the Apple II at the April 1977 [[West Coast Computer Faire]]. Wozniak's first article about the Apple II was in ''[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]]'' magazine in May 1977.<ref name="The Apple-II by Woz">{{cite magazine | magazine=Byte | title=The Apple-II | first=Stephen | last=Wozniak | date=May 1977 | volume=2 | issue=5 | page=36 | url=https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1977-05/page/n35 | access-date=July 18, 2019}}</ref> It became one of the first highly successful mass-produced personal computers in the world. Wozniak also designed the [[Disk II]] [[floppy disk drive]], released in 1978 specifically for use with the [[Apple II]] to replace the slower [[Cassette tape#Data recording|cassette tape]] storage.

In 1980, Apple went public to instant and significant financial profitability, making Jobs and Wozniak both millionaires. The Apple II's intended successor, the [[Apple III]], released the same year, was a commercial failure and was discontinued in 1984. According to Wozniak, the Apple III "had 100 percent hardware failures", and that the primary reason for these failures was that the system was designed by Apple's marketing department, unlike Apple's previous engineering-driven projects.<ref name="byte198501"/>

[[File:Computer macintosh 128k, 1984 (all about Apple onlus).jpg|thumb|An original [[Macintosh]] with hardware]]
During the early design and development phase of the [[Macintosh 128K|original Macintosh]], Wozniak had a heavy influence over the project along with [[Jef Raskin]], who conceived the computer. Later named the "Macintosh 128k", it would become the first mass-market personal computer featuring an integral [[graphical user interface]] and [[Computer mouse|mouse]]. The Macintosh would also go on to introduce the [[desktop publishing]] industry with the addition of the Apple [[LaserWriter]], the first [[laser printer]] to feature [[vector graphics]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.islandnet.com/~kpolsson/applehis/appl1984.htm |title=Chronology of Apple Computer Personal Computers |last=Polsson |first=Ken |date=July 29, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821105822/http://www.islandnet.com/~kpolsson/applehis/appl1984.htm |archive-date=August 21, 2009 |access-date=October 29, 2019}} See May 3, 1984.</ref> In a 2013 interview, Wozniak said that in 1981, "Steve [Jobs] really took over the project when I had a plane crash and wasn't there."<ref name=wozorg/><ref name=TheVerge/>

===Plane crash and temporary leave from Apple===
On February 7, 1981, the [[Beechcraft Bonanza]] A36TC which Wozniak was piloting (and not qualified to operate<ref>{{cite web |title = NTSB Identification: LAX81FA044 |url = https://www.ntsb.gov/Pages/brief.aspx?ev_id=27749 |publisher = National Transportation Safety Board |access-date = December 27, 2023 |archive-date = December 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231227075838/https://www.ntsb.gov/Pages/brief.aspx?ev_id=27749 |url-status = live }}</ref>) crashed soon after takeoff from the [[Santa Cruz Sky Park|Sky Park Airport]] in [[Scotts Valley, California|Scotts Valley]], [[California]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Tirrell |first=Rick |title= The wisdom of resilience builders : how our best leaders create the world's most enduring enterprises |year=2009 |publisher= [[AuthorHouse]] |location=Bloomington, IN|isbn=978-1-4490-5323-9|page=236}}</ref> The airplane stalled while climbing, then bounced down the runway, broke through two fences, and crashed into an embankment. Wozniak and his three passengers—then-fiancée [[Candice Clark]], her brother Jack Clark, and Jack's girlfriend, Janet Valleau—were injured. Wozniak sustained severe face and head injuries, including losing a tooth, and also suffered for the following five weeks from [[anterograde amnesia]], the inability to create new memories. He had no memory of the crash, and did not remember his name while in the hospital or the things he did for a time after he was released.<ref name="byte198501">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/details/BYTE_Vol_10-01_1985-01_Through_The_Hourglass/page/n167/mode/2up | title=The Apple Story / Part 2: More History and the Apple III | work=Byte | date=January 1985 | access-date=October 26, 2013 |last1=Williams |first1=Gregg |last2=Moore |first2=Rob | page=166 | type=interview}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=O'Grady|first=Jason D.|title=Apple Inc.|year=2009|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, Conn.|isbn=978-0-313-36244-6|page=27}}</ref> He would later state that Apple II computer games were what helped him regain his memory.<ref name="iWoz"/> The [[National Transportation Safety Board]] investigation report cited premature liftoff and pilot inexperience as probable causes of the crash.<ref name="Apple Confidential">{{cite book|last=Linzmayer|first=Owen W.|title=Apple Confidential 2.0 : The Definitive History of the World's Most Colorful Company|year=2004|publisher=No Starch Press|location=San Francisco, Calif.|isbn=1-59327-010-0|edition=Rev. 2nd}}</ref>{{rp|pages=28–30}}

Wozniak did not immediately return to Apple after recovering from the airplane crash, seeing it as a good reason to leave.<ref name="byte198501"/> ''Infinite Loop'' characterized this time: "Coming out of the semi-coma had been like flipping a reset switch in Woz's brain. It was as if in his thirty-year old body he had regained the mind he'd had at eighteen before all the computer madness had begun. And when that happened, Woz found he had little interest in engineering or design. Rather, in an odd sort of way, he wanted to start over fresh."<ref name="Infinite Loop">{{cite book|author-link=Michael S. Malone|first=Michael S.|last=Malone|year=1999|title=Infinite Loop|publisher=Currency/Doubleday |isbn=978-0-385-48684-2|oclc=971131326|url=https://archive.org/details/infiniteloophoww00malo}}</ref>{{rp|322}}

===UC Berkeley and US Festivals===
[[File:Steve Wozniak, 1983.jpg|thumb|Wozniak in 1983]]
Later in 1981, after recovering from the plane crash, Wozniak re-enrolled at UC Berkeley to complete his [[Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences]] degree that he started there in 1971 (and which he would finish in 1986).<ref>[https://engineering.berkeley.edu/steve-wozniak-inventor-and-apple-co-founder/ Berkeley Engineering - Steve Wozniak: Inventor and Apple co-founder] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802192606/https://engineering.berkeley.edu/steve-wozniak-inventor-and-apple-co-founder/ |date=August 2, 2022 }} Retrieved August 2, 2022</ref> Because his name was well known at this point, he enrolled under the name Rocky Raccoon Clark, which is the name listed on his diploma,<ref name=wozorg/><ref name="wozemployee"/><ref name=theconversation/> although he did not officially receive his degree in electrical engineering and computer sciences until 1987.<ref name=Jobs&Woz/><ref name=wozorg/>

In May 1982 and 1983, Wozniak, with help from professional concert promoter [[Bill Graham (promoter)|Bill Graham]], founded the company Unuson, an abbreviation of "unite us in song",<ref name="World According">{{cite magazine | magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] | date=September 1, 1998 | first=Gary | last=Wolf | title=The World According to Woz | url=https://www.wired.com/1998/09/woz/ | access-date=July 18, 2019 | archive-date=October 10, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010015319/https://www.wired.com/1998/09/woz/ | url-status=live }}</ref> which sponsored two [[US Festival]]s, with "US" pronounced like the pronoun, not as initials. Initially intended to celebrate evolving technologies, the festivals ended up as a technology exposition and a rock festival as a combination of music, computers, television, and people. After losing several million dollars on the 1982 festival, Wozniak stated that unless the 1983 event turned a profit, he would end his involvement with rock festivals and get back to designing computers.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Us Festival: More Music, Money and Madness|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=June 9, 1983 |issue=397|pages=42–45}}</ref> Later that year, Wozniak returned to Apple product development, desiring no more of a role than that of an engineer and a motivational factor for the Apple workforce.<ref name="iWoz" /><ref name="Infinite Loop"/>{{rp|323–324}}

===Return to Apple product development===
[[File:Steve Wozniak and Andy Hertzfeld 1985.jpg|thumb|Wozniak and Macintosh system software designer [[Andy Hertzfeld]] at an [[Apple User Group Connection]] meeting in 1985]]
Starting in the mid-1980s, as the Macintosh experienced slow but steady growth, Apple's corporate leadership, including Steve Jobs, increasingly disrespected its [[Flagship#Flagship as metaphor|flagship]] [[cash cow]] Apple II series{{emdash}}and Wozniak along with it. The Apple II division{{emdash}}other than Wozniak{{emdash}}was not invited to the Macintosh introduction event, and Wozniak was seen kicking the dirt in the parking lot.<ref name="Steve Thumbs">{{cite book | title=My Close Encounters With Steve Jobs | chapter=Chapter 10: Steve Thumbs his Nose at the Apple II | first=David | last=Bunnell | date=April 30, 2010 | via=Cult of Mac | chapter-url=https://www.cultofmac.com/40434/steve-thumbs-his-nose-at-the-apple-ii-recollections/ | access-date=July 19, 2019 | archive-date=July 19, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719104951/https://www.cultofmac.com/40434/steve-thumbs-his-nose-at-the-apple-ii-recollections/ | url-status=live }}</ref> Although Apple II products provided about 85% of Apple's sales in early 1985, the company's January 1985 annual meeting did not mention the Apple II division or its employees, a typical situation that frustrated Wozniak.<ref name="rice19850415">{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zC4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA35 | title=Unrecognized Apple II Employees Exit | work=[[InfoWorld]] | date=April 15, 1985 | access-date=February 4, 2015 | last=Rice | first=Valerie | page=35 | archive-date=March 1, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301054845/https://books.google.com/books?id=zC4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA35 | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Final departure from Apple workforce===
Even with the success he had helped to create at Apple, Wozniak believed that the company was hindering him from being who he wanted to be, and that it was "the bane of his existence".<ref name="Flatow" /> He enjoyed engineering, not management, and said that he missed "the fun of the early days".<ref name="wozemployee"/> As other talented engineers joined the growing company, he no longer believed he was needed there.<ref name="iWoz" /> By early 1985, Wozniak left Apple again and sold most of his stock.<ref name="rice19850415"/> Media coverage attributed his departure to disagreements with Apple management, quoting his statement that Apple had "been going in the wrong direction for the last five years",<ref name="rice19850415"/> but Wozniak later objected to this portrayal and stated that he left primarily because he was excited to start [[CL 9]] and recapture the fun of developing a new technology.<ref name="iWoz" />{{rp|page=266|quote=So I made some comments like this, and then the reporter asked, "So that's the reason you're leaving?" And I said, point-blank, "Oh no, that's not the reason. I'm leaving because I want to do this remote control." But the Wall Street Journal printed the article suggesting I was mad at Apple and that was the reason I was leaving.}}

The Apple II platform financially carried the company well into the Macintosh era of the late 1980s;<ref name="rice19850415"/> it was made semi-portable with the [[Apple IIc]] of 1984, and was extended, with some input from Wozniak, by the [[16-bit computing|16-bit]] [[Apple IIGS]] of 1986, and was discontinued altogether when the [[Apple IIe]] was discontinued on November 15, 1993 (although the [[Apple IIe Card|Apple IIe card]], which allowed compatible Macintosh computers to run Apple II software and use certain Apple II peripherals, was produced until May 1995).

===Post-Apple===
[[File:Woz signs Modbook.jpg|thumb|Wozniak signs a [[Axiotron Modbook|Modbook]] at [[Macworld Expo]] in 2009]]
After his career at Apple, Wozniak founded [[CL 9]] in 1985, which developed and brought the first programmable [[universal remote]] control to market in 1987, called the "CORE".<ref name="iWoz" /> Beyond engineering, Wozniak's second lifelong goal had always been to teach elementary school because of the important role teachers play in students' lives. Eventually, he did teach computer classes to children from the fifth through ninth grades, and teachers as well.<ref name=theconversation>{{Cite news|url=http://theconversation.com/interview-steve-wozniak-apple-co-founder-and-inventor-of-the-home-computer-64313|title=Interview: Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder and inventor of the home computer|work=[[The Conversation (website)|The Conversation]]|first=David|last=Glancer|date=August 26, 2016|access-date=May 17, 2017|archive-date=May 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513202022/http://theconversation.com/interview-steve-wozniak-apple-co-founder-and-inventor-of-the-home-computer-64313|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Flatow">Flatow, Ira. ''Present at the Future: From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature''. USA: [[HarperCollins]], 2007. 263-4. Print.</ref> Unuson continued to support this, funding additional teachers and equipment.<ref name="World According"/>

In 2001, Wozniak founded [[Wheels of Zeus]] (WOZ)<ref>{{Cite web |url= http://edition.cnn.com/2002/TECH/industry/01/24/wozniak.zeus.idg/ |title= Apple co-founder turns the Wheels of Zeus |date= January 24, 2002 |last= Costello |first= Sam |publisher= [[CNN]] |access-date= October 19, 2017 |archive-date= October 19, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171019163838/http://edition.cnn.com/2002/TECH/industry/01/24/wozniak.zeus.idg/ |url-status= live }}</ref> to create wireless [[GPS]] technology to "help everyday people find everyday things much more easily". In 2002, he joined the board of directors of [[Ripcord Networks]], Inc., joining Apple alumni [[Ellen Hancock]], [[Gil Amelio]], Mike Connor, and Wheels of Zeus co-founder [[Alex Fielding]] in a new [[telecommunications]] venture. Later the same year he joined the board of directors of [[Danger (company)|Danger, Inc.]], the maker of the [[Danger Hiptop|Hip Top]].

In 2006, Wheels of Zeus was closed, and Wozniak founded [[Acquicor Technology]], a [[holding company]] for acquiring technology companies and developing them, with Apple alumni Hancock and Amelio. From 2009 through 2014 he was chief scientist at [[Fusion-io]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/technology/business-computing/05wozniak.html |title= Wozniak Accepts Post at a Storage Start-Up |first= Ashlee |last= Vance |author-link=Ashlee Vance |work= The New York Times |date= February 4, 2009 |access-date= September 28, 2016 |archive-date= August 22, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180822232534/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/technology/business-computing/05wozniak.html |url-status= live }}</ref> In 2014 he became chief scientist at Primary Data, which was founded by some former Fusion-io executives.<ref>{{cite news |title= The Band's Back Together: Woz Joins Startup Primary Data |date= November 19, 2014 |first= Chris |last= Preimesberger |work= [[eWeek]] |url= https://www.eweek.com/virtualization/the-band-s-back-together-woz-joins-startup-primary-data/ |access-date= September 28, 2016 }}</ref> [[Silicon Valley Comic Con]] (SVCC) is an annual [[pop culture]] and [[technology]] [[Convention (meeting)|convention]] at the [[San Jose McEnery Convention Center]] in [[San Jose, California]]. The convention was co-founded by Wozniak and Rick White, with Trip Hunter as CEO.<ref>{{cite web|title=Silicon Valley Comic Con WOZ Welcome Address, published on YouTube|website = [[YouTube]]| date=May 2, 2016 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9v2rpUoWRAI| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/9v2rpUoWRAI| archive-date=October 28, 2021|access-date=May 2, 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Wozniak announced the annual event in 2015 along with [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] legend [[Stan Lee]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Silicon Valley Comic Con 2016, published on YouTube|website = [[YouTube]]| date=April 17, 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFk84ZnLDRc| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/tFk84ZnLDRc| archive-date=October 28, 2021|access-date=March 20, 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In October 2017, Wozniak founded [[Woz U]], an online educational technology service for independent students and employees.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/10/13/apple-steve-wozniak-launches-woz-u-tech-school.html|title=Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak launches 'Woz U' tech school|last=Stangel|first=Luke|date=October 13, 2017|website=Bizjournals|access-date=May 5, 2019|archive-date=November 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101011729/https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2017/10/13/apple-steve-wozniak-launches-woz-u-tech-school.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As of December 2018, Woz U was licensed as a school with the [[Arizona]] state board.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/20/woz-u-complaint-over-quality-steve-wozniak-scottsdale-school-dismissed/2343067002/|title=Complaint over quality of Woz U, Steve Wozniak's Scottsdale school, dismissed|website=azcentral|language=en|access-date=May 5, 2019}}</ref>

Though permanently leaving Apple as an active employee in 1985, Wozniak chose to never remove himself from the official employee list, and continues to represent the company at events or in interviews.<ref name="wozemployee"/> Today he receives a stipend from Apple for this role, estimated in 2006 to be {{US$|120000}} per year.<ref name="iWoz" /><ref name="wozemployee">{{Cite news|url=http://woz.org/letters/never-left-apple/|title=I Never Left Apple|date=January 3, 2018|work=Woz.org|access-date=October 2, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=March 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327162321/http://woz.org/letters/never-left-apple/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/video/?%2Fvideo%2Fbestoftv%2F2011%2F08%2F25%2Fexp.piers.wozniak.jobs.reaction.cnn | work=CNN | title=CNN Video | access-date=October 15, 2011 | archive-date=February 3, 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203113642/http://www.cnn.com/video/?%2Fvideo%2Fbestoftv%2F2011%2F08%2F25%2Fexp.piers.wozniak.jobs.reaction.cnn | url-status=live }}</ref> He is also an Apple shareholder.<ref name="wozstock">[http://www.fool.com/research/2000/features000302.htm Apple's ''Other'' Steve (Stock Research)] {{webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061019134707/http://www.fool.com/research/2000/features000302.htm |date=October 19, 2006 }} March 2, 2000, [[The Motley Fool]].</ref> He maintained a friendly acquaintance with Steve Jobs until Jobs's death in October 2011.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Krishnamoorthy|first1=Anand|last2=Li|first2=Susan|title=Jobs's Death Was Like Lennon, JFK Getting Shot, Wozniak Says|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2011-10-06/steve-jobs-s-death-struck-like-john-lennon-jfk-getting-shot-wozniak-says|work=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]]|date=October 6, 2011|access-date=March 25, 2015|archive-date=November 12, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112175804/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2011-10-06/steve-jobs-s-death-struck-like-john-lennon-jfk-getting-shot-wozniak-says|url-status=live}}</ref> However, in 2006, Wozniak stated that he and Jobs were not as close as they used to be.<ref>{{cite web |last=Peterson |first=Kim |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002929498_wozqa14.html |title=Steve Wozniak Q & A |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=April 16, 2006 |access-date=March 22, 2013 |archive-date=July 11, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711132610/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002929498_wozqa14.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 

In a 2013 interview, Wozniak said that the original [[Mac (computer)|Macintosh]] "failed" under Steve Jobs, and that it was not until Jobs left that it became a success. He called the [[Apple Lisa]] group the team that had kicked Jobs out, and that Jobs liked to call the Lisa group "idiots for making [the Lisa computer] too expensive". To compete with the Lisa, Jobs and his new team produced a cheaper computer, one that, according to Wozniak, was "weak", "lousy" and "still at a fairly high price". "He made it by cutting the RAM down, by forcing you to swap disks here and there", says Wozniak. He attributed the eventual success of the Macintosh to people like [[John Sculley]] "who worked to build a Macintosh market when the Apple II went away".<ref name=TheVerge>{{cite web|title=Steve Wozniak on Newton, Tesla, and why the original Macintosh was a 'lousy' product|url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/6/27/4468314/steve-wozniak-on-how-the-newton-changed-his-life|access-date=June 28, 2013|work=[[The Verge]]|date=June 27, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312014832/http://www.theverge.com/2013/6/27/4468314/steve-wozniak-on-how-the-newton-changed-his-life|archive-date=March 12, 2016}}</ref>

At the end of 2020, Wozniak announced the launch of a new company helmed by him, Efforce. Efforce is described as a marketplace for funding ecologically friendly projects. It used a WOZX [[cryptocurrency]] token for funding and blockchain to redistribute the profit to token holders and businesses engaged on the platform.<ref>{{cite web|last=Clifford|first=Catherine|title=Steve Wozniak is starting another company, 45 years after co-founding Apple with Steve Jobs|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/04/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-is-starting-a-second-company-efforce.html|date=December 4, 2020|access-date=December 5, 2020|work=[[CNBC]]|archive-date=December 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205135221/https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/04/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-is-starting-a-second-company-efforce.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In September 2021, it was reported that Wozniak was also starting a company alongside co-founder [[Alex Fielding]] named Privateer Space to address the problem of [[space debris]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steve Wozniak's latest moonshot is a private space company |url=https://www.engadget.com/steve-wozniak-privateer-space-160142857.html |last=Bonifacic |first=Igor |date=September 13, 2021 |website=Engadget |language=en-US |access-date=September 14, 2021 |archive-date=September 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210914071523/https://www.engadget.com/steve-wozniak-privateer-space-160142857.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=September 14, 2021|title=Steve Wozniak, Co-Founder of Apple, Announces His Own Aerospace Company Privateer Space With Enigmatic VIDEO|url=https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/Steve-Wozniak-Co-Founder-of-Apple-Announces-His-16456121.php|newspaper=Stamford Advocate|language=en-US|access-date=September 14, 2021|archive-date=September 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210914071516/https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/Steve-Wozniak-Co-Founder-of-Apple-Announces-His-16456121.php|url-status=live |last1=Español |first1=Entrepreneur en }}</ref>  Privateer Space debuted the first version of its space traffic monitoring software on March 1, 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Jackie Wattles |title=Steve Wozniak's new venture takes aim at space junk |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/01/tech/space-junk-steve-wozniak-privateer-scn/index.html |access-date=March 1, 2022 |website=CNN |date=March 2022 |archive-date=March 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220301180305/https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/01/tech/space-junk-steve-wozniak-privateer-scn/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2024, Wozniak sued [[YouTube]] in respect to a scam that was being circulated on the platform using his likeness. Later, he won after a San Jose appeals court ruled YouTube was liable for failing to combat it.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-21 |title=Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak wins latest round in lawsuit vs. YouTube over Bitcoin scam |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-wins-latest-round-in-lawsuit-vs-youtube-over-bitcoin-scam/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406011147/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-wins-latest-round-in-lawsuit-vs-youtube-over-bitcoin-scam/ |archive-date=April 6, 2024 |access-date=2024-10-07 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Inventions==
[[File:Steve Wozniak 2012.jpg|thumb|Wozniak at [[Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre]], Australia, 2012]]
Wozniak is listed as the sole inventor on the following Apple patents:
* US Patent No. 4,136,359: "Microcomputer for use with video display"<ref>[http://ip.com/pat/US4136359 US Patent No. 4,136,359] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904020726/http://ip.com/pat/US4136359 |date=September 4, 2015 }}, [[US Patent & Trademark Office]], Patent Full Text and Image Database.</ref>—for which he was inducted into the [[National Inventors Hall of Fame]].
* US Patent No. 4,210,959: "Controller for magnetic disc, recorder, or the like"<ref>[http://ip.com/patent/US4210959 Controller for magnetic disc, recorder, or the like] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713052537/http://ip.com/patent/US4210959 |date=July 13, 2011 }} US Patent 4210959, [[US Patent & Trademark Office]], Patent Full Text and Image Database.</ref>
* US Patent No. 4,217,604: "Apparatus for digitally controlling [[PAL]] color display"<ref>[http://ip.com/patent/US4217604 Apparatus for digitally controlling PAL color display] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713052555/http://ip.com/patent/US4217604 |date=July 13, 2011 }} US Patent 4217604, [[US Patent & Trademark Office]], Patent Full Text and Image Database.</ref>
* US Patent No. 4,278,972: "Digitally-controlled color signal generation means for use with display"<ref>[http://ip.com/patent/US4278972 Digitally-controlled color signal generation means for use with display] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713052638/http://ip.com/patent/US4278972 |date=July 13, 2011 }} US Patent 4278972, [[US Patent & Trademark Office]], Patent Full Text and Image Database.</ref>

==Philanthropy==
In 1990, Wozniak helped found the [[Electronic Frontier Foundation]], providing some of the organization's initial funding<ref name="eff-barlow">{{cite web|url=https://www.eff.org/pub/EFF/history.eff |title=A Not Terribly Brief History of the Electronic Frontier Foundation |author=John Perry Barlow |date=November 8, 1990 |access-date=December 28, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010627230955/http://www.eff.org/pub/EFF/history.eff |archive-date=June 27, 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://w2.eff.org/legal/cases/SJG/?f=eff_creation.html|title=Formation documents and mission statement for the EFF|access-date=December 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151204082735/http://w2.eff.org/legal/cases/SJG/?f=eff_creation.html|archive-date=December 4, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tuxradar.com/content/inside-electronic-frontier-foundation |title=Inside the Electronic Frontier Foundation |author=Mike Saunders |date=July 3, 2013 |publisher=TuxRadar.com |access-date=December 28, 2015 |archive-date=October 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171022035507/http://www.tuxradar.com/content/inside-electronic-frontier-foundation |url-status=live }}</ref> and serving on its founding Board of Directors.<ref name="eff-barlow" /> He is the founding sponsor of the [[Tech Museum]], Silicon Valley Ballet and [[Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose]].<ref name=wozorg/> Also since leaving Apple, Wozniak has provided all the money, and much onsite technical support, for the technology program in his local school district in [[Los Gatos, California|Los Gatos]].<ref name="iWoz" /> Un.U.Son. (Unite Us In Song), an organization Wozniak formed to organize the two [[US Festival|US festivals]], is now primarily tasked with supporting his educational and philanthropic projects.<ref name="iWoz" /><ref name="World According"/> In 1986, Wozniak lent his name to the Stephen G. Wozniak Achievement Awards (popularly known as "Wozzie Awards"), which he presented to six Bay Area high school and college students for their innovative use of computers in the fields of business, art, and music.<ref>{{cite web |title=SIX BAY AREA STUDENTS WIN WOZNIAK ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS |url=http://nishioka.com/projects/wozzie-article.html |work=[[San Jose Mercury News]] |access-date=August 5, 2020 |page=3D |language=en |date=September 13, 1986 |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126060410/https://nishioka.com/projects/wozzie-article.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Wozniak is the subject of a student-made film production of his friend's (Joe Patane) nonprofit Dream Camp Foundation for high-level-need youth entitled ''Camp Woz: The Admirable Lunacy of Philanthropy''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Camp Woz: The Admirable Lunacy of Philanthropy |url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCofEHAX4VgJ4B5zpfkyhM4A |website=YouTube.com |access-date=August 5, 2020 |archive-date=November 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105034727/https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCofEHAX4VgJ4B5zpfkyhM4A |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Views on artificial superintelligence==

In March 2015, Wozniak stated that while he had originally dismissed [[Ray Kurzweil]]'s opinion that [[machine intelligence]] would outpace human intelligence. Within several decades, Wozniak had changed his mind: {{cquote|I agree that the future is scary and very bad for people. If we build these devices to take care of everything for us, eventually they'll think faster than us and they'll get rid of the slow humans to run companies more efficiently.
}} Wozniak stated that he had started to identify a contradictory sense of foreboding about artificial intelligence, while still supporting the advance of technology.<ref>{{cite news |last= Holley |first= Peter |title= Apple co-founder on artificial intelligence: 'The future is scary and very bad for people' |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/03/24/apple-co-founder-on-artificial-intelligence-the-future-is-scary-and-very-bad-for-people/ |access-date= January 7, 2018 |newspaper= [[Washington Post]] |date= March 24, 2015 |archive-date= January 5, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180105054545/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/03/24/apple-co-founder-on-artificial-intelligence-the-future-is-scary-and-very-bad-for-people/ |url-status= live }}</ref>

By June 2015, Wozniak changed his mind again, stating that a [[superintelligence]] takeover would be good for humans: {{cquote|They're going to be smarter than us and if they're smarter than us then they'll realise they need us&nbsp;... We want to be the family pet and be taken care of all the time&nbsp;... I got this idea a few years ago and so I started feeding my dog filet steak and chicken every night because 'do unto others'.<ref>{{cite news |last= Gibbs |first= Samuel |title= Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak says humans will be robots' pets |url= https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jun/25/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-says-humans-will-be-robots-pets |access-date= January 7, 2018 |work= [[The Guardian]] |date= June 25, 2015 |archive-date= January 8, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063128/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jun/25/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-says-humans-will-be-robots-pets |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Dowd |first= Maureen |author-link= Maureen Dowd |title= Elon Musk's Billion-Dollar Crusade to Stop the A.I. Apocalypse |url= https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/03/elon-musk-billion-dollar-crusade-to-stop-ai-space-x |access-date= January 7, 2018 |work= [[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date= April 2017 |language= en |archive-date= July 26, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180726041656/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/03/elon-musk-billion-dollar-crusade-to-stop-ai-space-x |url-status= live }}</ref>}}

In 2016, Wozniak changed his mind again, stating that he no longer worried about the possibility of superintelligence emerging because he is skeptical that computers will be able to compete with human "intuition": "A computer could figure out a logical endpoint decision, but that's not the way intelligence works in humans". Wozniak added that if computers do become superintelligent, "they're going to be partners of humans over all other species just forever".<ref>{{cite news |title= Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak dismisses AI concerns raised by Stephen Hawking and Nick Bostrom |url= http://www.businessinsider.com/steve-wozniak-ai-2016-10 |access-date= January 7, 2018 |work= [[Business Insider]] |date= October 9, 2016 |language= en |archive-date= January 8, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063238/http://www.businessinsider.com/steve-wozniak-ai-2016-10 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Stockton |first= Nick |title= How Steve Wozniak Got Over His Fear of Robots Turning People Into Pets |url= https://www.wired.com/2017/04/steve-wozniak-silicon-valleys-nerdiest-legend/ |access-date= January 7, 2018 |magazine= [[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |date= April 19, 2017 |archive-date= January 8, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063845/https://www.wired.com/2017/04/steve-wozniak-silicon-valleys-nerdiest-legend/ |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Elon Musk says AI could doom human civilization. Zuckerberg disagrees. Who's right? |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2018/01/02/artificial-intelligence-end-world-overblown-fears/985813001/ |access-date= January 7, 2018 |work= [[USA Today]] |date= January 2, 2018 |language= en |archive-date= January 8, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180108075432/https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2018/01/02/artificial-intelligence-end-world-overblown-fears/985813001/ |url-status= live }}</ref> 

Wozniak signed a 2023 [[Pause Giant AI Experiments: An Open Letter|open letter]] from the [[Future of Life Institute]] calling for "all AI labs to immediately pause for at least 6 months the training of AI systems more powerful than GPT-4".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kahn |first=Jeremy |title=Musk and Wozniak among 1,100+ signing open letter calling for 6-month ban on creating powerful A.I. |url=https://fortune.com/2023/03/29/elon-musk-apple-steve-wozniak-over-1100-sign-open-letter-6-month-ban-creating-powerful-ai/ |access-date=2024-07-24 |website=Fortune |language=en}}</ref> In an interview to the BBC in May 2023 Wozniak said that AI may make scams more difficult to detect, noting that "AI is so intelligent it's open to the bad players, the ones that want to trick you about who they are".<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 8, 2023 |title=Apple co-founder says AI may make scams harder to spot |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-65496150 |access-date=May 16, 2023}}</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Kathy and Woz (2400485190) (cropped2).jpg|thumb|Wozniak and friend [[Kathy Griffin]] in 2008]]
Wozniak lives in [[Los Gatos, California]]. He applied for [[Australian citizenship]] in 2012, and has stated that he would like to live in [[Melbourne]], Australia in the future.<ref>{{cite web|last=Hopewell|first=Luke|title=Steve Wozniak Is Becoming An Australian Citizen|url=http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/09/steve-wozniak-is-becoming-an-australian-citizen/|website=[[Gizmodo]]|access-date=June 12, 2014|date=September 25, 2012|archive-date=July 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714162148/http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/09/steve-wozniak-is-becoming-an-australian-citizen/|url-status=live}}</ref> Wozniak has been referred to frequently by the nickname "Woz", or "The Woz"; he has also been called "The Wonderful Wizard of Woz" and "The Second Steve" (in regard to his early business partner and longtime friend, [[Steve Jobs]]).<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2011-03-steve-the-woz-wozniak-2011-isaac-asimov-science-awar |title= Steve "The Woz" Wozniak: 2011 Isaac Asimoz Science Award |publisher=[[American Humanist Association]] |first= Sean |last= Mulligan |access-date= May 13, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120913002604/http://www.americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2011-03-steve-the-woz-wozniak-2011-isaac-asimov-science-awar |archive-date= September 13, 2012 }}</ref> "WoZ" (short for "[[Wheels of Zeus]]") is the name of a company he founded in 2002; it closed in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kanellos |first1=Michael |title=Wozniak shuts down Wheels of Zeus |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/wozniak-shuts-down-wheels-of-zeus/ |website=CNET |access-date=August 8, 2020 |language=en |archive-date=May 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506231331/https://www.cnet.com/news/wozniak-shuts-down-wheels-of-zeus/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Wozniak describes his impetus for joining the [[Freemasonry|Freemasons]] in 1979 as being able to spend more time with his then-wife, Alice Robertson, who belonged to the [[Order of the Eastern Star]], associated with the Masons. He was initiated in 1979 at Charity Lodge No. 362 in [[Campbell, California]], now part of Mt. Moriah Lodge No. 292 in Los Gatos.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/wozniak_s/wozniak_s.html |title= A Few Famous Masons |publisher= [[Grand Lodge of British Columbia and the Yukon]] |access-date= March 25, 2013 |archive-date= October 3, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161003040539/http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/wozniak_s/wozniak_s.html |url-status= live }}</ref> Today he is no longer involved: "I did become a Freemason and know what it's about but it doesn't really fit my tech/geek personality. Still, I can be polite to others from other walks of life. After our divorce was filed I never attended again but I did contribute enough for a lifetime membership."<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://apple.slashdot.org/story/12/10/01/1527257/ask-steve-wozniak-anything |title= Ask Steve Wozniak Anything |date= October 1, 2012 |website= [[Slashdot]] |access-date= October 25, 2018 |archive-date= October 25, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181025190354/https://apple.slashdot.org/story/12/10/01/1527257/ask-steve-wozniak-anything |url-status= live }}</ref>

Wozniak was married to [[slalom canoe]] gold-medalist [[Candice Clark]] from June 1981 to 1987. They have three children together, the youngest being born after their divorce was finalized.<ref name=macobserver>{{cite web |url= https://www.macobserver.com/columns/thisweek/2004/20040613.shtml |title= This Week in Apple History – June 7–13: The Woz Marries, Switcher Campaign Starts, IE Ended |publisher= The Mac Observer |date= June 13, 2004 |access-date= November 28, 2012 |archive-date= June 18, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130618041710/http://www.macobserver.com/columns/thisweek/2004/20040613.shtml |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=People>{{cite magazine|url=http://people.com/archive/wizard-of-woz-vol-41-no-6/|title=Wizard of Woz|magazine=People|access-date=April 9, 2018|archive-date=March 22, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180322020714/http://people.com/archive/wizard-of-woz-vol-41-no-6/|url-status=live}}</ref> After a high-profile relationship with actress [[Kathy Griffin]], who described him on ''[[Tom Green's House Tonight]]'' in 2008 as "the biggest techno-nerd in the Universe", Wozniak married Janet Hill, his current spouse.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://fortune.com/2012/03/16/im-in-trouble-says-wozs-wife/ |title= 'I'm in trouble' says Woz's wife |work= [[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] |access-date= February 27, 2017 |archive-date= February 22, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170222231553/http://fortune.com/2012/03/16/im-in-trouble-says-wozs-wife/ |url-status= live }}</ref> On his religious views, Wozniak has called himself an "atheist or agnostic".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://archive.woz.org/letters/general/72.html |title=Letters-General Questions Answered |last=Wozniak |first=Steve |date=2002 |website=Woz.org |access-date=November 22, 2017 |location=Los Gatos, California |quote=I am also atheist or agnostic (I don't even know the difference). I've never been to church and prefer to think for myself. I do believe that religions stand for good things, and that if you make irrational sacrifices for a religion, then everyone can tell that your religion is important to you and can trust that your most important inner faiths are strong. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423142039/http://archive.woz.org/letters/general/72.html |archive-date=April 23, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Interview with Steve Wozniak|url=http://brianriley.us/interview_with_steve_wozniak.html|publisher=BrianRiley.us|access-date=August 17, 2014|author=Brian Riley|location=Davis, California|year=2012|quote=I'm kind of spiritual inside. I have a lot of philosophies of how to be a good person, how to treat people, and I've worked them out, thinking over and over, reflecting inside my mind the way shy people do, and I was very shy, and coming up with my own little keys and rules for life, and they stayed with me|archive-date=August 19, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819091301/http://brianriley.us/interview_with_steve_wozniak.html|url-status=dead}}.</ref>

He is a member of a [[Segway Polo]] team, the ''Silicon Valley Aftershocks'',<ref>{{Cite web|title=Steve Wozniak played in this year's Segway polo world championships|url=https://qz.com/462689/steve-wozniak-played-in-this-years-segway-polo-world-championships/|last=Dobush|first=Grace|website=Quartz|date=July 23, 2015|language=en|access-date=May 20, 2020|archive-date=December 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209034331/https://qz.com/462689/steve-wozniak-played-in-this-years-segway-polo-world-championships/|url-status=live}}</ref> and is considered a "super fan" of the [[National Hockey League|NHL]] ice hockey team [[San Jose Sharks]].<ref>{{cite web |url-status=live |url=https://abc7news.com/san-jose-sharks-st-louis-western-conference-finals-game-2/5298627/ |title='This may be the year': San Jose Sharks super fan Steve Wozniak gives take on Game 2 vs. St Louis Blues |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509065335/https://abc7news.com/san-jose-sharks-st-louis-western-conference-finals-game-2/5298627/ |archive-date=May 9, 2021 |date=May 13, 2019 |website=ABC7 San Francisco}}</ref> In 1998, he co-authored with [[Larry Wilde]] ''The Official Computer Freaks Joke Book''. In 2006, he co-authored with [[Gina Smith (author)|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 made [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' Best Seller list]].<ref name=wozorg/>

Wozniak has discussed his personal disdain for money and accumulating large amounts of wealth. He told ''[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]]'' magazine in 2017, "I didn't want to be near money, because it could corrupt your values&nbsp;... I really didn't want to be in that super 'more than you could ever need' category." He also said that he only invests in things "close to his heart". When Apple first went public in 1980, Wozniak offered $10&nbsp;million of his own stock to early Apple employees, something Jobs refused to do.<ref name=CNBC>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/21/why-apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-doesnt-trust-money.html|title=Why Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak doesn't trust money|first=Emmie|last=Martin|website=[[CNBC]]|date=April 21, 2017|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=August 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190807095758/https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/21/why-apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-doesnt-trust-money.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2017, Wozniak received a Polish citizenship and visited [[Poland]] to meet with government and technology industry representatives and to visit his father’s hometown.<ref>{{cite web |last=Matczak |first=Marta |date=March 9, 2023 |title=Who is who? Steve Wozniak and his latest endeavors |url=https://nofluffjobs.com/log/off-duty-en/who-is-who-steve-wozniak-and-his-latest-endeavors/ |website=LOG. |location= |publisher= |url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240318020945/https://nofluffjobs.com/log/off-duty-en/who-is-who-steve-wozniak-and-his-latest-endeavors/ |archive-date = March 18,  2024 |access-date= April 6, 2025 |quote= Wozniak takes pride in his Polish heritage and culture, and in 2017, he was granted Polish citizenship and visited Poland to meet with government and technology industry representatives and to visit his father’s hometown.}}</ref>

He has the condition [[Prosopagnosia|prosopagnosia (face blindness)]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-34188602 |title= Steve Wozniak: Shocked and amazed by Steve Jobs movie |last= Kelion |first= Leo |date= September 9, 2015 |website= [[BBC]] |access-date= August 22, 2015 |archive-date= September 9, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150909131606/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-34188602 |url-status= live }}</ref> Wozniak has expressed support for the [[right to repair]] movement. In July 2021, he made a [[Cameo (website)|Cameo]] video in response to right to repair activist [[Louis Rossmann]], in which he described the issue as something that has "really affected me emotionally", and credited Apple's early breakthroughs to open technology of the 1970s.<ref>{{Cite news|date=July 8, 2021|title=Apple founder Steve Wozniak backs right-to-repair movement|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-57763037|access-date=July 8, 2021|archive-date=July 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210708220629/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-57763037|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Steve Wozniak Voices Strong Support for the Growing Right to Repair Movement|url=https://gizmodo.com/steve-wozniak-voices-strong-support-for-the-growing-rig-1847251718|access-date=July 8, 2021|website=Gizmodo|date=July 8, 2021|language=en-us|archive-date=July 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210708212044/https://gizmodo.com/steve-wozniak-voices-strong-support-for-the-growing-rig-1847251718|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 2023, Wozniak suffered a [[minor stroke]] while preparing to speak at a conference in Mexico City. He was hospitalized briefly before returning home.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Calderon |first=Veronica |date=November 9, 2023 |title=Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak hospitalized in Mexico City, source says  |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/09/tech/apple-cofounder-steve-wozniak-hospitalized-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=November 9, 2023 |website=[[CNN]] |language=en}}</ref><ref name="guard-9nov2023">{{cite news |title=Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak hospitalized for stroke in Mexico City |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/nov/09/apple-steve-wozniak-hospitalized-stroke-mexico-city |access-date=November 9, 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=November 9, 2023}}</ref> Wozniak became a [[Serbia]]n citizen in December 2023. He said that he and his wife Janet, who is also getting a passport, will from now on "promote" Serbia while living in the U.S.<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 6, 2023 |title=Stiv Voznijak dobio pasoš Srbije - Vučić rekao: Kompjuterski genije je Srbin - Politika - Dnevni list Danas |url=https://www.danas.rs/vesti/politika/vucic-kompujterski-genije-je-srbin/ |access-date=December 6, 2023 |language=sr-RS}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://apnews.com/article/wozniak-apple-serbia-passport-election-653c9e372f9a493e5a4359edcf06d7d4 |title= Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to receive Serbian passport, president says |date= December 6, 2023 |website= [[Associated Press]] |access-date= December 6, 2023 |archive-date= December 6, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20231206210015/https://apnews.com/article/wozniak-apple-serbia-passport-election-653c9e372f9a493e5a4359edcf06d7d4 |url-status= live }}</ref>

==Honors and awards==
[[File:Steve Wozniak by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg|thumb|Wozniak speaking at a conference in [[Paradise Valley, Arizona]] in 2017]]Because of his lifetime of achievements, multiple organizations have given Wozniak awards and recognition, including:
* In 1979, Wozniak was awarded the ACM [[Grace Murray Hopper Award]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Stephen Wozniak - ACM Grace Murray Hopper Award|publisher= [[Association for Computing Machinery]]|url= https://awards.acm.org/award-recipients/wozniak_7711134|access-date= December 15, 2023|archive-date= October 29, 2023|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20231029143646/https://awards.acm.org/award-recipients/wozniak_7711134|url-status= live}}</ref>
* In 1985, both he and [[Steve Jobs]] received the [[National Medal of Technology]] from US President [[Ronald Reagan]], the country's highest honor for achievements related to technological progress.<ref name="iWoz" /> 
* Later he donated funds to create the "Woz Lab" at the University of Colorado at Boulder. In 1998, he was named a Fellow of the [[Computer History Museum]] "for co-founding Apple Computer and inventing the Apple I personal computer."<ref>{{cite web|title= Steve Wozniak — CHM Fellow Award Winner|publisher= [[Computer History Museum]]|url= http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/steve-wozniak|access-date= March 30, 2015|archive-date= September 27, 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160927232443/http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/steve-wozniak|url-status= live}}</ref> 
* In 2000, Wozniak received the [[American Computer & Robotics Museum]]'s George R. Stibitz Computing and Communications Innovator Award "for inventing the Apple I & Apple II computers & for co-founding of the Apple Computer Company."<ref>{{Cite web |title=2000 |url=https://acrmuseum.org/2000 |access-date=June 10, 2023 |website=American Computer and Robotics Museum |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2022, Wozniak received the museum's Lifetime Achievement award for his role in the invention of the Apple I & II computers and the co-founding Apple.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stibitz Wilson Awards |url=https://acrmuseum.org/awards |access-date=June 10, 2023 |website=American Computer and Robotics Museum |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=ACRM 2022 Stibitz Wilson Awards | date=October 19, 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSWF1cUuc_U |access-date=June 10, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> He has also personally signed and donated an Apple I to the museum, and is listed as one of the museum's "founders" level donors for this donation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thank you to Our Generous Donors |url=https://acrmuseum.org/our-donors |access-date=June 10, 2023 |website=American Computer and Robotics Museum |language=en-US}}</ref>
* In September 2000, Wozniak was inducted into the [[National Inventors Hall of Fame]],<ref>[http://www.invent.org/Hall_Of_Fame/155.html Inventor Profile] — National Inventors Hall of Fame. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221075015/http://www.invent.org/Hall_Of_Fame/155.html |date=February 21, 2014}}</ref> and in 2001 he was awarded the 7th Annual [[Heinz Award]] for Technology, the Economy and Employment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.heinzawards.net/recipients/steve-wozniak |title=The Heinz Awards, Steve Wozniak profile |publisher=Heinzawards.net |access-date=November 11, 2010 |archive-date=July 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723143210/http://www.heinzawards.net/recipients/steve-wozniak |url-status=live }}</ref> 
* The [[American Humanist Association]] awarded him the [[Isaac Asimov Awards|Isaac Asimov Science Award]] in 2011.
* In 2004, Wozniak was given the 5th Annual Telluride Tech Festival Award of Technology.<ref>{{cite web |title=Past Honorees |url=http://www.techfestival.org/index.html%3Fp=314.html |website=Telluride Tech Festival |access-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-date=July 31, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731200219/http://www.techfestival.org/index.html%3Fp=314.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 
* He was awarded the Global Award of the President of [[Armenia]] for Outstanding Contribution to Humanity Through IT in 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://globalitaward.am/en/laureates/steve-wozniak |title=Global Award of the President of Armenia for Outstanding Contribution to Humanity Through IT |publisher=globalitaward.am}}</ref>
* On February 17, 2014, in Los Angeles, Wozniak was awarded the 66th [[Hoover Medal]] from IEEE President & CEO J. Roberto de Marca.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stephen Wozniak |url=https://www.asme.org/About-ASME/Honors-Awards/Joint-Society-Awards/Hoover-Awards/2013 |access-date=June 3, 2022 |website=www.asme.org |language=en}}</ref> The award is presented to an engineer whose professional achievements and personal endeavors have advanced the well-being of humankind and is administered by a board representing five engineering organizations: The [[American Society of Mechanical Engineers]]; the [[American Society of Civil Engineers]]; the [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers]]; the [[American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers]]; and [[Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hoover Medal |url=https://www.asme.org/About-ASME/Honors-Awards/Joint-Society-Awards/Hoover-Awards |access-date=June 3, 2022 |website=www.asme.org |language=en}}</ref>
* The New York City Chapter of Young Presidents' Organization presented their 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award to Wozniak on October 16, 2014, at the [[American Museum of Natural History]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=About |url=http://104.225.5.50/about/ |access-date=June 3, 2022 |website=Officially Woz |language=en-US |archive-date=June 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220611094935/http://104.225.5.50/about/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In November 2014, ''[[Industry Week]]'' added Wozniak to the Manufacturing Hall of Fame.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.industryweek.com/iw-manufacturing-hall-fame/2014-hall-fame-inductee-steve-wozniak|title=2014 Hall of Fame Inductee: Steve Wozniak|date=November 3, 2014|website=[[IndustryWeek]]|access-date=March 6, 2019|archive-date=March 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306234816/https://www.industryweek.com/iw-manufacturing-hall-fame/2014-hall-fame-inductee-steve-wozniak|url-status=live}}</ref>
* On June 19, 2015, Wozniak received the Legacy for Children Award from the [[Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose]]. The Legacy for Children Award honors an individual whose legacy has significantly benefited the learning and lives of children. The purpose of the Award is to focus [[Silicon Valley]]'s attention on the needs of our children, encouraging us all to take responsibility for their well-being. Candidates are nominated by a committee of notable community members involved in children's education, health care, human and social services, and the arts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdm.org/connect/support/legacy-for-children/|title=Legacy for Children Award|work=Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose|access-date=June 26, 2015|archive-date=June 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626175315/https://www.cdm.org/connect/support/legacy-for-children/|url-status=live}}</ref> The city of San Jose named a street "Woz Way" in his honor. The street address of the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose is 180 Woz Way.
* On June 20, 2015, The Cal Alumni Association (UC Berkeley's Alumni Association) presented Wozniak with the 2015 Alumnus of the Year Award. "We are honored to recognize Steve Wozniak with CAA's most esteemed award", said CAA President Cynthia So Schroeder '91. "His invaluable contributions to education and to UC Berkeley place him among Cal's most accomplished and respected alumni."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://alumni.berkeley.edu/announcements/caa-announcements/caa-announces-2015-alumnus-year-steve-wozniak-bs-86-and-other-alumni|title=CAA Announces the 2015 Alumnus of the Year Steve Wozniak, B.S. '86 and Other Alumni Award Recipients|work=Cal Alumni Association|date=March 3, 2015|access-date=June 26, 2015|archive-date=March 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150324023834/http://alumni.berkeley.edu/announcements/caa-announcements/caa-announces-2015-alumnus-year-steve-wozniak-bs-86-and-other-alumni|url-status=live}}</ref>
* In March 2016, [[High Point University]] announced that Wozniak will serve as their Innovator in Residence. Wozniak was High Point University's commencement speaker in 2013. Through this ongoing partnership, Wozniak will connect with High Point University students on a variety of topics and make campus-visits periodically.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.highpoint.edu/blog/2016/03/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-becomes-innovator-in-residence/ |title=Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Becomes Innovator in Residence, High Point University |last=Baker |first=Eli |date=March 7, 2016 |website=[[High Point University]] |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=December 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033855/http://www.highpoint.edu/blog/2016/03/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-becomes-innovator-in-residence/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-172956871.html |title=Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Holds Micro Sessions with HPU Students |author=Marketwired |date=February 21, 2017 |website=[[Yahoo! Finance]] |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=August 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823022241/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-172956871.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Paul Allen and Steve Wozniak at the Living Computer Museum.jpg|thumb|right|[[Microsoft]] co-founder [[Paul Allen]] and Wozniak at the [[Living Computer Museum]] in 2017]]
* In March 2017, Wozniak was listed by UK-based company Richtopia at number 18 on its list of the 200 Most Influential Philanthropists and Social Entrepreneurs.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://richtopia.com/inspirational-people/top-200-philanthropists-social-entrepreneurs|title=Philanthropists & Social Entrepreneurs Top 200: From Elon Musk to Melinda Gates, These Are the Most Influential Do-Gooders in the World|work=Richtopia|access-date=March 29, 2017|archive-date=March 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170330083458/https://richtopia.com/inspirational-people/top-200-philanthropists-social-entrepreneurs|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.delfi.lt/eu/mep-guoga-is-included-in-list-of-top-200-philanthropists-in-the-world.d?id=74226700|title=Top 200 Philanthropists in the world|work=Delfi|access-date=March 31, 2017|archive-date=March 31, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170331142537/http://en.delfi.lt/eu/mep-guoga-is-included-in-list-of-top-200-philanthropists-in-the-world.d?id=74226700|url-status=live}}</ref>
* Wozniak is the 2021 recipient of the [[IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronics Award]] "for pioneering the design of consumer-friendly personal computers."<ref>{{cite web |title=IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronics Award Recipients |url=https://www.ieee.org/content/dam/ieee-org/ieee/web/org/about/awards/recipients/ibuka_rl.pdf |website=IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronics Award |access-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-date=October 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024144241/https://www.ieee.org/content/dam/ieee-org/ieee/web/org/about/awards/recipients/ibuka_rl.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*

===Honorary degrees===
For his contributions to technology, Wozniak has been awarded a number of Honorary [[Doctoral]] degrees, which include the following:
* [[University of Colorado Boulder]]: 1989<ref name=CUIndependent>{{Cite web |title= CU breeds success: A look at famous alumni |url= http://cuindependent.com/2007/02/20/cu-breeds-success-a-look-at-famous-alumni/ |website= [[CU Independent]] |access-date= February 11, 2016 |date= February 20, 2007 |archive-date= August 10, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110810142651/http://cuindependent.com/2007/02/20/cu-breeds-success-a-look-at-famous-alumni/ |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name="uofc">{{cite web| last = Seibold| first = Chris| title = This Day in Apple History December 28, 1989: Woz Gets Honorary Doctorate, Dish Incident Forgotten| url = http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/history/2006/12/28/| access-date = July 31, 2007| archive-date = October 11, 2007| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071011154113/http://applematters.com/index.php/section/history/2006/12/28/| url-status = dead}}</ref> 
* [[North Carolina State University]]: 2004<ref name="NCSU">[http://www.ncsu.edu/about-nc-state/university-leadership/board-of-trustees/honorary-degrees/degrees-conferred/ Honorary Doctorate] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421161056/http://www.ncsu.edu/about-nc-state/university-leadership/board-of-trustees/honorary-degrees/degrees-conferred/ |date=April 21, 2014 }} — [[North Carolina State University]] List of Honorary Degrees.</ref>
* [[Kettering University]]: 2005<ref>{{Cite web|title = Commencement Coverage|url = https://my.kettering.edu/news/commencement-coverage-0|publisher = [[Kettering University]]|access-date = February 11, 2016|archive-date = March 5, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305073115/https://my.kettering.edu/news/commencement-coverage-0|url-status = live}}</ref><ref>[http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/presidentsoffice/honorary_degrees.jsp Honorary Doctorate] — Kettering University List of Honorary Degrees. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125172739/http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/presidentsoffice/honorary_degrees.jsp |date=November 25, 2011}}</ref> 
* [[Nova Southeastern University]], Fort Lauderdale: 2005<ref>{{cite web|title = NSU Commencement Programs|url = http://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1146&context=nsudigital_commencement|publisher = [[Nova Southeastern University]]|access-date = April 9, 2017|archive-date = April 10, 2017|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170410214041/http://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1146&context=nsudigital_commencement|url-status = live}}</ref>
* [[Escuela Superior Politecnica del Litoral|ESPOL]] University in Ecuador: 2008<ref>{{Cite news |last=Delgado |first=Max |date=October 29, 2008 |title=Tuve vergüenza de tener tanto dinero |work=El Telégrafo |url=https://www.espol.edu.ec/sites/default/files/docs_escribe/1551.pdf |access-date=November 4, 2022 |archive-date=November 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108021049/https://www.espol.edu.ec/sites/default/files/docs_escribe/1551.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Michigan State University]], in East Lansing 2011<ref>{{Citation |title= MSU convocation speaker and honorary degree recipient Steve Wozniak, Spring 2011 |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8YRMWAGBJw | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/O8YRMWAGBJw| archive-date=October 28, 2021|date= May 9, 2011 |access-date= February 11, 2016 |publisher=[[Michigan State University]] |via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://commencement.msu.edu/ |title=Commencement &#124; MSU Commencement |publisher=Commencement.msu.edu |access-date=March 22, 2013 |archive-date=August 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813212658/http://commencement.msu.edu/ |url-status=live }}</ref> 
* [[Concordia University]] in Montreal, Canada: June 22, 2011<ref>{{Cite web|title = Honorary degree citation -Steve&nbsp;Wozniak|url = https://www.concordia.ca/offices/archives/honorary-degree-recipients/2011/06/steve-wozniak.html|publisher = [[Concordia University]]|access-date = February 9, 2016|archive-date = February 16, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160216140327/http://www.concordia.ca/offices/archives/honorary-degree-recipients/2011/06/steve-wozniak.html|url-status = live}}</ref>
* [[State Engineering University of Armenia]]: November 11, 2011<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hetq.am/eng/news/6409/steve-wozniak-awarded-honorary-doctoral-degree.html|title=Steve Wozniak Awarded Honorary Doctoral Degree - Hetq - News, Articles, Investigations|work=hetq.am|date=November 11, 2011 |access-date=February 27, 2017|archive-date=April 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170409221846/http://hetq.am/eng/news/6409/steve-wozniak-awarded-honorary-doctoral-degree.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Santa Clara University]]: June 16, 2012<ref>{{Cite web |title= June 2012 - 2012 - Press Releases - News & Events - Santa Clara University |url= https://www.scu.edu/news-and-events/press-releases/2012/june-2012/wozs-wisdom-to-the-santa-clara-university-class-of-2012.html |publisher= [[Santa Clara University]] |access-date= February 11, 2016 |archive-date= February 15, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160215203933/https://www.scu.edu/news-and-events/press-releases/2012/june-2012/wozs-wisdom-to-the-santa-clara-university-class-of-2012.html |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Woz's Wisdom to the Santa Clara University Class of 2012 |url=https://www.scu.edu/news-and-events/press-releases/2012/june-2012/wozs-wisdom-to-the-santa-clara-university-class-of-2012.html |website=www.scu.edu |publisher=Santa Clara University |access-date=August 8, 2020 |language=en |archive-date=February 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160215203933/https://www.scu.edu/news-and-events/press-releases/2012/june-2012/wozs-wisdom-to-the-santa-clara-university-class-of-2012.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[University Camilo José Cela]] in [[Madrid]], [[Spain]]: November 8, 2013<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ucjc.edu/en/university/estructura-academica/honoris-causa/|title=Honorary Doctorates - Universidad Camilo José Cela|publisher=[[Universidad Camilo José Cela]]|access-date=March 22, 2016|archive-date=April 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404054505/http://www.ucjc.edu/en/university/estructura-academica/honoris-causa/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Lincoln Law School of San Jose|Lincoln Law School]] in [[San Jose, California|San Jose]], [[California]]: May 19, 2023<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lincolnlawschool.edu/steve-wozniak-to-keynote-for-lincoln-law-school-scholarship-gala/ |title=Steve Wozniak to Keynote for Lincoln Law School Scholarship Gala |work=[[Lincoln Law School of San Jose|Lincoln Law School]] |date=April 27, 2023 |access-date=August 24, 2024}}</ref>

==In media==
Wozniak has been mentioned, represented, and interviewed numerous times in media from the founding of Apple to the present.

===Documentaries===
* ''[[Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine]]'' (2015)
* ''Camp Woz: The Admirable Lunacy of Philanthropy''{{spaced ndash}} a 2009 documentary<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1227767/ |title=Camp Woz: The Admirable Lunacy of Philanthropy |publisher=[[IMDb]] }}</ref>
* ''Geeks On Board''{{spaced ndash}} a 2007 documentary<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1110255/ |title=Geeks On Board |publisher=[[IMDb]] }}</ref>
* ''[[The Secret History of Hacking]]''{{spaced ndash}} a 2001 documentary film featuring Wozniak and other [[Phreaking|phreakers]] and [[computer hacking|computer hackers]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Secret History of Hacking |url=http://www.theblackpacket.com/the-secret-history-of-hacking/ |website=theblackpacket.com |access-date=August 8, 2020 |date=August 10, 2015 |archive-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808143118/http://theblackpacket.com/the-secret-history-of-hacking/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=15 Best Documentaries About Hacking And Hackers You Should Watch |url=https://techlog360.com/documentaries-about-hacking/ |website=TechLog360 |access-date=August 8, 2020 |date=May 11, 2020 |archive-date=October 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001144332/https://techlog360.com/documentaries-about-hacking/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''[[Triumph of the Nerds]]''{{spaced ndash}} a 1996 PBS documentary series about the rise of the personal computer.
* ''Steve Wozniak's Formative Moment''{{spaced ndash}} a March 15, 2016, original short feature film from [[Reddit]] Formative Moment<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrhmepZlCWY| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/XrhmepZlCWY| archive-date=October 28, 2021|title=Steve Wozniak's Formative Moment|date=March 15, 2016 |publisher=[[Reddit]]|access-date=February 27, 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

===Feature films===
[[File:Steve Wozniak and Joey Slotnick.jpg|thumb|Wozniak and [[Joey Slotnick]] (left), who portrayed him in the 1999 film ''[[Pirates of Silicon Valley]]'']]
* 1999: ''[[Pirates of Silicon Valley]]''{{spaced ndash}} a [[TNT (American TV network)|TNT]] film directed by [[Martyn Burke]]. Wozniak is portrayed by [[Joey Slotnick]] while Jobs is played by [[Noah Wyle]].<ref name="Vulture20151007">{{cite web |last1=Ebiri |first1=Bilge |title=Ranking the Actors Who Played Steve Wozniak, From Worst to Best |url=https://www.vulture.com/2015/10/ranking-the-actors-whove-played-steve-wozniak.html |website=Vulture |access-date=August 8, 2020 |language=en-us |date=October 7, 2015 |archive-date=October 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024231803/https://www.vulture.com/2015/10/ranking-the-actors-whove-played-steve-wozniak.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* 2013: ''[[Jobs (film)|Jobs]]'' {{spaced ndash}} a film directed by [[Joshua Michael Stern]]. Wozniak is portrayed by [[Josh Gad]], while Jobs is portrayed by [[Ashton Kutcher]].<ref name="Vulture20151007"/>
* 2015: ''[[Steve Jobs (film)|Steve Jobs]]'' {{spaced ndash}} a [[feature film]] by [[Danny Boyle]], with a screenplay written by [[Aaron Sorkin]]. Wozniak is portrayed by [[Seth Rogen]], while Jobs is portrayed by [[Michael Fassbender]].<ref name="Vulture20151007"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Sakoui |first1=Anousha |last2=Palmeri |first2=Christopher |title=Wozniak Says Scene in Jobs Trailer Is Fiction, Loves It Anyway |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-02/wozniak-says-scene-in-jobs-trailer-is-fiction-loves-it-anyway |access-date=August 8, 2020 |work=Bloomberg |date=July 2, 2015 |archive-date=November 29, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161129191303/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-02/wozniak-says-scene-in-jobs-trailer-is-fiction-loves-it-anyway |url-status=live }}</ref>
* 2015: ''Steve Jobs vs. [[Bill Gates]]: The Competition to Control the Personal Computer, 1974–1999'': Original film from the [[National Geographic Channel]] for the ''[[American Genius]]'' series.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://americangenius.nationalgeographic.com/episode/jobs-vs-gates/ |title= American Genius |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150910170511/http://americangenius.nationalgeographic.com/episode/jobs-vs-gates |archive-date= September 10, 2015 }}</ref>

=== Television ===
* TechTV – ''[[The Screen Savers]]'' 2002-09-27 (Steve Wozniak and [[Kevin Mitnick]] a convicted hacker) Featuring an interview with [[Adrian Lamo]] 
* After seeing her stand-up performance in [[Saratoga, California]], Wozniak began dating comedian [[Kathy Griffin]].<ref name="bestweek">{{cite web|last=Collins|first=Michelle|title=VH1 Best Week Ever — Off The Market: Kathy Griffin Finds a New Man!| url=http://www.bestweekever.tv/2007/08/17/off-the-market-kathy-griffin-finds-a-new-man/|access-date=September 18, 2007|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070820012223/http://www.bestweekever.tv/2007/08/17/off-the-market-kathy-griffin-finds-a-new-man/ <!-- Bot retrieved archive -->|archive-date=August 20, 2007}}</ref> Together, they attended the [[59th Primetime Emmy Awards|2007 Emmy Awards]],<ref name="ceosmack">{{cite web|title=Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Escorted Comedian Kathy Griffin & Her Potty Mouth To The Emmy's.|url=http://www.ceosmack.com/2007/09/18/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-escorted-comedian-kathy-griffin-her-potty-mouth-to-the-emmys/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217011722/http://www.ceosmack.com/2007/09/18/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-escorted-comedian-kathy-griffin-her-potty-mouth-to-the-emmys/|archive-date=December 17, 2007|url-status=usurped|access-date=September 18, 2007}}()</ref> and subsequently made many appearances on the fourth season of her show ''[[Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List]]''. Wozniak is on the show as her date for the [[Producers Guild of America]] award show. However, on a June 19, 2008, appearance on ''[[The Howard Stern Show]]'', Griffin confirmed that they were no longer dating and decided to remain friends.<ref>[http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?month=June&day=19&year=2008&x=45&y=9 Who's so vain?] June 19, 2008 — ''[[The Howard Stern Show]]''. {{webarchive |url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131105225726/http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?month=June&day=19&year=2008&x=45&y=9 |date= November 5, 2013 }}</ref>
* Wozniak portrays a parody of himself in the first episode of the television series ''[[Code Monkeys]]''; he plays the owner of Gameavision before selling it to help fund his next enterprise.<ref>{{cite web |title=Code Monkeys: The Woz |url=http://www.tv.com/shows/code-monkeys/the-woz-1118132/ |website=TV.com |publisher=CBS Interactive Inc. |access-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-date=August 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806160644/http://www.tv.com/shows/code-monkeys/the-woz-1118132/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Harris |first1=Will |title=Code Monkeys: Season 1 DVD review |url=http://www.bullzeye.com/television_reviews/2007/code_monkeys_1.htm |website=www.bullzeye.com |access-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-date=October 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029043303/http://www.bullzeye.com/television_reviews/2007/code_monkeys_1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> He later appears again in the 12th episode when he is in [[Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas]] at the annual Video Game Convention and sees Dave and Jerry. He also appears in a parody of the "Get a Mac" ads featured in the final episode of ''Code Monkeys'' second season.
* Wozniak is interviewed and featured in the documentary ''[[Hackers Wanted]].''
* Wozniak competed on Season 8 of ''[[Dancing with the Stars (American season 8)|Dancing with the Stars]]'' in 2009<ref>[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/02/wozniak-dancing.html "Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to compete on 'Dancing With the Stars'"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210203758/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/02/wozniak-dancing.html |date=February 10, 2009 }}. ''Los Angeles Times''. February 8, 2009. Retrieved on February 8, 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/7741472.stm |title= Why Apple founders got 'fired up.' |access-date= February 5, 2009 |date= November 21, 2008 |work= [[BBC News]] |archive-date= December 29, 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081229053123/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/7741472.stm |url-status= live }}</ref> where he danced with [[Karina Smirnoff]]. Though Wozniak and Smirnoff received 10 combined points from the three judges out of 30, the lowest score of the evening, he remained in the competition. He later posted on a [[social network]]ing site that he believed that the vote count was not legitimate and suggested that the ''Dancing with the Stars'' judges had lied about the vote count to keep him on the show.<ref>{{cite web |date= March 17, 2009 |last= Matyszczyk |first= Chris |url= http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10198341-71.html?tag=mncol;txt|title=Woz in ABC 'outright lie' accusation |website=[[CNET]] }}</ref> After being briefed on the method of judging and vote counting, he retracted and apologized for his statements.<ref>{{cite news |date= March 19, 2009 |last= Fashingbauer Cooper |first= Gael |url= https://www.today.com/popculture/wozniak-sorry-he-called-dancing-show-fake-1C9416292 |title= Wozniak sorry he called 'Dancing' show 'fake' |publisher= [[Today.com]] |access-date= October 19, 2021 |archive-date= December 2, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211202003907/https://www.today.com/popculture/wozniak-sorry-he-called-dancing-show-fake-1C9416292 |url-status= live }}</ref> Though suffering a pulled [[hamstring]] and a fracture in his foot, Wozniak continued to compete,<ref>[http://tvwatch.people.com/2009/03/23/injured-steve-wozniak-will-perform-on-mondays-dwts/ Injured Woz Will Perform] {{webarchive |url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090325092416/http://tvwatch.people.com/2009/03/23/injured-steve-wozniak-will-perform-on-mondays-dwts/ |date= March 25, 2009 }} ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'', March 23, 2009.</ref> but was eliminated from the competition on March 31, with a score of 12 out of 30 for an [[Argentine Tango]].<ref>[http://kara.allthingsd.com/20090401/woz-gets-hipchecked-off-the-dance-floor-big-big-sigh Woz Gets Hipchecked Off the Dance Floor] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090402120303/http://kara.allthingsd.com/20090401/woz-gets-hipchecked-off-the-dance-floor-big-big-sigh/ |date=April 2, 2009 }}, by [[Kara Swisher]], April 1, 2009, [[All Things Digital]].</ref>
* On September 30, 2010, he appeared as himself on ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]'' season 4 episode "[[The Cruciferous Vegetable Amplification]]".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Busch |first1=Jenna |title=The Big Bang Theory: "The Cruciferous Vegetable Amplification" Review |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2010/10/01/the-big-bang-theory-the-cruciferous-vegetable-amplification-review |website=IGN |access-date=August 8, 2020 |language=en |date=October 1, 2010 |archive-date=October 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021030320/https://www.ign.com/articles/2010/10/01/the-big-bang-theory-the-cruciferous-vegetable-amplification-review |url-status=live }}</ref> While dining in [[The Cheesecake Factory]] where Penny works, he is approached by Sheldon via [[telepresence]] on a Texai robot. Leonard tries to explain to Penny who Wozniak is, but she says she already knows him from ''Dancing with the Stars''.
* On September 30, 2013, he appeared along with early Apple employees [[Daniel Kottke]] and [[Andy Hertzfeld]] on the television show ''[[John Wants Answers]]'' to discuss the movie ''[[Jobs (film)|Jobs]]''.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=The Cast of ''Jobs'' |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gICwMQQ48Dk |series=[[John Wants Answers]] |first=John |last=Vink |station=KMVT 15 |date=October 1, 2013 |language=en |access-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-date=January 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108193411/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gICwMQQ48Dk |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In April 2021, Wozniak became a panelist for the new TV series ''[[Unicorn Hunters]]'',<ref>{{cite web| url = https://unicornhunters.com/| title = ''Unicorn Hunters''| access-date = March 25, 2022| archive-date = March 25, 2022| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220325200729/https://unicornhunters.com/| url-status = live}}</ref> a business investment show from the makers of the series ''[[The Masked Singer (American TV series)|The Masked Singer]]''.<ref>{{cite news| url = https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-new-tv-show-unicorn-hunters-will-feature-steve-wozniak-and-allow-viewers-to-invest-in-ipos-11618334384| title = ''MarketWatch'' - The new TV show 'Unicorn Hunters' will feature Steve Wozniak and allow viewers to invest in pre-IPO companies| newspaper = Marketwatch| access-date = April 15, 2021| archive-date = April 15, 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210415194922/https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-new-tv-show-unicorn-hunters-will-feature-steve-wozniak-and-allow-viewers-to-invest-in-ipos-11618334384| url-status = live| last1 = Blasi| first1 = Weston}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://realscreen.com/2021/04/09/the-masked-singer-producer-smart-dog-media-preps-unicorn-hunters/| title = ''Realscreen'' - "The Masked Singer" producer Smart Dog Media preps "Unicorn Hunters"| access-date = April 15, 2021| archive-date = April 15, 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210415194925/https://realscreen.com/2021/04/09/the-masked-singer-producer-smart-dog-media-preps-unicorn-hunters/| url-status = live}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|San Francisco Bay Area}}
* [[Apple IIGS#Limited Edition ("Woz"-signed case)|Apple IIGS]] (limited edition case molded with Woz's signature)
* [[Group coded recording]] (encoding methods for representing data)
* ''[[Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution]]'' (1984 book)
* [[Information Age#Personal computers|Information Age]] (which Wozniak and Jobs helped pioneer)
* [[Woz Cup|Woz Challenge Cup]] (Segway polo world championship)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Steve Wozniak}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{Official website}}
* {{Discogs artist}}
* {{IMDb name|0941967}}
* [http://www.folklore.org/ProjectView.py?project=Macintosh&characters=Steve%20Wozniak Steve Wozniak] at [[Andy Hertzfeld]]'s ''The Original Macintosh'' (folklore.org)

{{Steve Wozniak|state=expanded}}
{{Apple}}
{{Apple celeb}}
{{Original Macintosh developer team}}
{{Hopper winners}}
{{HP}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wozniak, Steve}}
[[Category:1950 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century American engineers]]
[[Category:20th-century American inventors]]
[[Category:21st-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century American engineers]]
[[Category:21st-century American inventors]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the University of Technology Sydney]]
[[Category:Amateur radio people]]
[[Category:American agnostics]]
[[Category:American atheists]]
[[Category:American computer businesspeople]]
[[Category:American computer programmers]]
[[Category:American computer scientists]]
[[Category:American emigrants to Serbia]]
[[Category:American Freemasons]]
[[Category:American people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:American technology company founders]]
[[Category:Apple II family]]
[[Category:Apple Inc. people]]
[[Category:Apple Inc. executives]]
[[Category:Apple Fellows]]
[[Category:Atari people]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from San Jose, California]]
[[Category:Computer designers]]
[[Category:Computer hardware engineers]]
[[Category:De Anza College alumni]]
[[Category:American education activists]]
[[Category:Engineers from California]]
[[Category:Grace Murray Hopper Award laureates]]
[[Category:Hewlett-Packard people]]
[[Category:Homestead High School (California) alumni]]
[[Category:Internet activists]]
[[Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Engineering]]
[[Category:National Medal of Technology recipients]]
[[Category:Naturalized citizens of Serbia]]
[[Category:Nerd culture]]
[[Category:People from Los Gatos, California]]
[[Category:People with traumatic brain injuries]]
[[Category:Personal computing]]
[[Category:Philanthropists from California]]
[[Category:Serbian people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:Steve Jobs]]
[[Category:Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents]]
[[Category:UC Berkeley College of Engineering alumni]]
[[Category:University of Colorado Boulder alumni]]