While not exactly a surprise given that he has been on leave for most of the year, Apple’s iconic leader Steve Jobs officially resigned from the CEO position earlier this evening.
“I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know,” Jobs wrote in a letter to Apple’s Board of Directors and outlaying community. “Unfortunately, that day has come.”
Jobs will remain Chairman of the company as former chief operating officer Tim Cook is elevated to the CEO position. The near-term impact of Apple, which is expected to announce the iPhone 5 as early as mid-September and could possibly unveil and lower-cost iPhone and even a next edition of the iPad is subsequent months, will likely be minimal.
The company has been preparing for this day for years, and MacRumors via the Wall Street Journal is reporting that Jobs will continue to be “closely involved in the company’s product strategy.”
How couldn’t he be. Of course, the world will miss Jobs – a master showman in addition to being a technology visionary – on stage hawking new Apple innovations in the weeks, months and years to come.
Regardless of whether you are an Apple fanatic, Android fanboy or casual observer, the world in general and the app space in particular is a more magical place with Jobs within it.
