Exclusive interview with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in Denmark, November 2019. About the state of Apple, modern technology, entrepreneurship, AI, Internet of Things and Steve Jobs. Contact: Lasse Ladefoged, lala@borsen.dk
@@blackaxe2428 Jobs was a business-teamleader type, he wasn't a technical person at all. They cannot be compared on that level. Many good products have failed in the industry because a non competent company leading management, and many because a bad product. So the skills of both of them are complementary.Woz was a HW SW guy first the first Mac's. I've personally liked the Motorola later PowerPc based Mac's, they were the perfect tools for DTP. But nowadays Apple computers are just expensive garbage.
depending on your age (mine b. '63) yeah, from Time magazine Computer of the Year; but at the same time too the climate is nothing like when I was a kid making me worry more about the world our grandkids will inherit. the present day is nothing like I thought it would be 40+ years ago
@Lata Lal For many, glory and attention is overrated and even undesired; particularly for those of us who enjoy design and development more than promotion. I'd say Wozniak has done well regardless, but for all like-minded innovators, I encourage the confidence and assertiveness to ensure we are not talked over, walked over, ignored or forgotten. Many a quiet man or woman provides great value which remains insufficiently acknowledged.
WOZ. A guy without an ego problem like some of the other tech giants. He was the designer and builder of the Apple 1 and 2. Most of todays tech heavyweights just develop a concept and then take off to let others develop it…then show up later to take the credit.
Thoma What is it you try to say on understand here ? he is just the best electronic wizard, not the great visonair, use less parts, keep it cheap... Today ? are you creative or do you need orders ?
I think a lot is going on in "AI" that he's not up on. Great minds are working on this. And although they probably are a long way off from recreating the entire thinking system of an ant, there are some very interesting and useful things that have been done. I'm not sure that we want an AI that functions exactly like a human (or an ant). A lot of it right now is focused on taking a problem, training the AI on the constraints (teaching it what the problem is), and then giving it a huge amount of data to look at. In a way, that's the life of a human. Sometimes I think the biggest thing that makes humans different is the 'jitter' that humans receive all day.
Steve is definitely a genius, but I don’t think he’s especially up on the state of A.i. For starters it’s not saying they are intelligent (in most cases) its that it performs a task which requires intelligence. Also the transistor was a revolutionary invention for humans and it it’s progress rate was to double transistor density every two years. A.I. Has already profoundly impacted our lives mainly doing behind the scenes type work which would be impossible for a human to do in mass, the kicker is that A.I. Is doubling itself 6 times hamster than the transistor is. Steve is great and I agree with a lot of he said in this but I don’t agree with his stance on A.I.
@@mikemichaelson120 Yes but the point Wozniak made is that its NOT intelligence. This was also said by nobel prize winning physicist Sir Roger Penrose. I think Steve is pretty 'up' on the current situation.
@@aryanbaviskar4127 Hardly anyone, outside of hardcore Apple fan circles, even knows his name much less, gives him credit for his role in creating Apple.
The thing about Woz is that he never cared about the credit or the money, Woz only cared about helping to create the technology and starting the revolution.
@@aryanbaviskar4127 Don't be so sure. It's only been in recent years since movies like Jobs and Steve Jobs came to be, and even those don't credit Woz the way that they should.
This guy looks like a regular dude but he is a genius, he invented the personal computer. I have massive respect for great geniuses who don't act like they are better than others. Great guy!
No offence but the personal computer was invented 6 years prior to the first Apple pc and Wozniak even drew inspiration from that machine (sorry can't remember the actual name)
@@neek01 obviously no one person invent something like this, but you have to put in your “no offense” comment which usually means “I’m about to say something offensive”. Whateves
@@sethtenrec The question is always what you mean by "personal computer". As you may have suggested, it wasn't much of an "invention" really, more a new attitude towards the usage of computers that grew successively for decades. Scientists and engineers often regard 1960s programmable scientific calculators from Olivetti and Hewlett Packard as the first personal computers ("computers" in a more original sense). Others would say that a programmable "terminal" like the Datapoint 2200 was the first actual PC (because it spawned Z80 and x86). Some see an early 8080 system running a BASIC interpreter as the first PC (because they admire Microsoft). However, most people would say that the IBM PC was the first personal computer, because of its name and its impact, despite being basically just a beefed up copy of S-100 and CP/M systems. I personally would say that the first personal computer was the Xerox Alto of 1972, although simpler computers like the Apple II, TRS-80, and all their followers got much more attention. (Discussing history can hardly be "offensive".)
I think true engineer wouldn't want this much public appearance. True engineer startup founders? Think Google or Tesla (Not Elon Musk, he didn't start or even had the idea)
like him too but..uhm... so apple pay is basically designed to be like a credit card... i never uhm... understand this because i am...uhm just using my credit card? :X Yes i eat a Jeff today...
He’s always come across as a good dude. And it’s nice that he hasn’t gone crazy in later years like a few other tech legends might have in recent years.
The part where he mentioned focusing on the smaller problems because someone with more money is focusing on the big problems using the same knowledge from the same books available at the time. That's the sort of wisdom I love from people like Woz. 👍
Brilliant computer engineer. He reduced a motherboard to one third it’s size just able to fit on a desk. The Apple I was the first best selling desktop PC which made the two Steve’s rich and famous. Later IBM and Microsoft made first DOS computer.
Microsoft bought DOS from some nobody genius. Bill is a savy and ruthless business man, but nothing more. He's like Steve in that regard, but with a completely different personality.
@@thekub32 But not a great one. He bought both DOS and BASIC from real programmers. You can't be both a programmer and ruthlessly run a company. That said... He made the right choice, since I've never met a billionaire programer.
most straightforward thinker and non competitive guy like him would live least to their 80s, he also look extremely vibrant. guys like job who over compete and think too hard on themself dies quicker, just the way unlimited stress destroys the body.
@@kubes8388 no doubt stress destroys the body but something like cancer which Steve has had nothing to do with attitude. He was a dick and excessive no doubt, but the guy didn't give a shit about power or anything like that either. The likes of Warren buffet or Rockefeller lived/living till a really old age despite their drive being better than others
@@cjwidener5397 He's not wrong when he said we can't even make an intelligence as small as an ant. AI stands for Artificial Intelligence, but the term "Intelligence" isn't even agreed by everyone. Heck, you can even call a normal person unintelligible.
This is such an incredible interview, they're literally standing in some sort of cafeteria area but you almost dont even notice because this gentleman asked very inquisitive questions. Wozniak is so thoughtful and intelligent and it shows when he speaks. I could listen to him all day because he talks about such complex issues and ideas with ease. I think if Steve Wozniak were in control of Apple to this day it would be the only phone and computer anyone uses.
@@unknown81360 You beat me to the punch! Jobs loved that quote, along with Gretsky's line "I don't skate to where the puck is, I skate to where I think the puck is going to be."
I love how wozniak explain about the meaning of intellligent, he says “we never think making a computer that would say, what should i do today?” great explanation and i agree with him that something what we thought of as artificial intelligent is not what is meant
I love Wozniak. He's the definition of someone who's driven by passion. Steve Jobs was driven by passion as well but he sacrificed his family and friends for it.
This dude has such a pure heart. I admire guys like Woz with the mindset that rather want to join a company that do good for humanity and not go for the highest paid job at corrupt companies.
@Caleb P I disagree with this. I don't think opening up the OS will benefit the regular crowd of people. The lovely thing about iPhones and macOS is that even non-tech oriented people can operate these devices. I've had multiple people keep messing up their Android phones because it gives them too much freedom where I advised them to switch to iOS and loved the carefree experience. And I truly believe that people that have a passion for tech will gravitate more towards Android, Linux like I did when I was younger.
@Caleb P Plus Woz has been bought out of his company a long long time ago. He can say whatever he thinks or wants for Apple, but remember that Apple is not that california startup that started in a garage it once was. It's a trillion dollar company ran by greedy profit makers.
@Caleb P i do agree with you on that level. I know Louis Rossman his channels his feud with Apple and I support guys like him to take it up against these greedy businesses. I have an Android but one time I switched to iPhone to see how it was, but the experience was just too limiting for me as a power-user so I switched back immediately. Like I said I do agree with you, but the truth is that Woz has zero input or influence on the course of the company anymore.
He has been my hero since I was a kid learning to program in the 80s. Now that the apple story is far beyond the initial Woz/Jobs building the first personal computer (apple II) in a garage, I feat Woz no longer gets the attention he deserves: I got my computer engineering undergrad degree at the univetsity of Illinois (Champaign Urbana) in 1998, and one of the toughest classes was going through the process o building a complete personal computer at the chip level. It was on a simulator/cad type system, but it was roughly equivalent to what they built in that garage. And even at one of the hardesr curriculums at one of the toughest universitjes, that was perhaps the most difficult class in the entire free degree. - and we had proven designs to go by and the hardware trouble free world of a simulator. I cannot express even to other engineers just how amazing his initial accomplishment really was and how special and elegantly genius the design was even years after Turing or Moore or Meely etc...
Peter Greek yes like it is apparent how intelligent and passionate he is but he communicates so clearly. Oftentimes very smart people have a hard time not sounding like a robot spewing information and technical jargon. Very inspiring guy to listen to
Good observation. In response I will encourage you and everyone who agrees with you to BE the change you wish to see in the world. Be kind, be gentler, be more patient and speak nicely to and about people you don’t know. 🙂
Wonderful Interview. So many Gems of WIsdom and Insights in such a short interview and great line of questioning by the Host to draw these answers. Woz is a True Loving Legend!
The amount of respect I have for him is something I can’t put into words. He made Apple - the product, not necessarily the company - and yet most people don’t know who he is. He was never a corporate sellout, much respect.
There’s a reason why San Jose named a street after him, Woz Way next to the Children’s Discovery Museum. Kids my age learned on Mac, it was apart of our life and created many people who went on to create the companies and tech we know today. Not the policies behind them but the hardware and software itself. It makes sense. The man should give speeches in schools to motivate children to be more like him and understand how to be good people and techies for the good of humanity.
You gotta luv this guy. He's the kind of talker that excites other people. His love of his life and his journey from there to here is contagious and inspiring. The stars must have aligned perfectly to bring Woz ad Steve Jobs together at the absolutely perfect time and the perfect place to work their world-changing magic.
That helped me feel a bit better, because in my younger years I really did have that type of always experiencing new things attitude, always experimenting, always learning something new. All the way up until I dropped out of UC Berkeley because I changed my major 6 times and couldn't decide what to do before I ran out of financial aid lol. In the time since then, I've had to work just to survive and I've feared I have no ability to learn or be creative anymore, but hearing that it starts when you are younger and gets solidified makes me feel better. Because even though I've had to work menial jobs for the past 8 years, my time in my early life to the early 20's was extremely productive and full of curiosity. I needed the inspiriation
I love Wozniak. He built the Apple One because he couldn't afford his own computer. He's not driven by money, he's driven by extreme innovation and making things work no matter what.
@@wlonsdale1 Anyway, its good to live a life of knowledge than being a dog chasing money. You're living it, only with a ****ng collar around the neck so what. All I am saying is that if you don't have the money is pretty much not possible doing something worth due to regulations. Don't ruin a day man, SYT.
Interesting to hear his take on AI and machine learning from this interview. Shows you how crazy fast that entire technology has moved in just three years.
Yeah, his comments on AI have not aged well although given where AI was over 3 years ago you can see why he held the opinion. Hindsight is 20/20. It's easy to poke holes in what he said about AI now, but 3 years ago I would have given a very similar answer. The human mind is not wired to intuit exponential growth. In 3 years AI has come further than in the last 15. I don't think even the AI researchers themselves could have predicted we would be where we are now just a few years back.
@@kirbyjoe7484well yeah he wasn't really wrong about that one. I think he was implying that human consciousness is still fundamentally different, even though AI is intelligent and does a great job at imitation. I mean, to this day, consciousness is actually still a problem in both science and philosophy. We have not able to intellectually understand consciousness, where it comes from and how it truly works.
I would kill to be able to sit with Steve Wozniak for a day and pick his mind about all sorts of things. A very interesting and intellectual individual.
0:28 caption reads, "What's your advice for the Danish sex scene?", well, I'm glad you asked. You see, "It all starts in elementary school when you're very young"
This is how engineers who were taught critical thinking back in the day design.. Comprehension not just rote memorization. It makes you mind work in very creative ways.
It's good to see Woz calling out AI for what it is - a marketing scam. What an absolute legend. He is what i would describe as a proper American, intelligent, polite and full of respect for others. Kudos also for giving that young man a decent interview.
His words didn't age well because it is absolutely taking off. I'm a PhD in academia and everyone uses ChatGPT for improving their writing and balling ideas. Some use it for programming and checking their code. If you don't understand how great AI is by now, then you're just not smart enough to use it to your advantage. Woz is an engineer, not a researcher. He can't invent new things or see the future. He can only take what exists and change it.
@@treali But you can’t deny the people using the term “AI” as a marketing buzzword to make a quick buck. There isn’t much AI outside of ChatGPT that isn’t garbage. Not to mention the proverbial slime oozing off these AI grifters selling their “courses” and vastly overblowing AI’s present capabilities.
@@trealino, he’s totally right, what’s taking off isn’t true AI. The technology that has been branded as AI is taking off, but that technology isn’t actual intelligence, like he said.
@@massapower Have you heard about "breakthrough"? Jobs literally scammed Wozniak. Wozniak also designed the Apple I, the computer that started the microcomputer boom and also the Apple ][, the computer family at the core of the business strategy of their company from 1977 until 1992. So, who made money thanks to who else?
Wait. You mean that there is a machine that is a dish WASHER? Despite the levity, I like the essence of what he is saying. Big tech companies should hire people who sit around a table and make lists of real problems in life. They could elicit the thoughts of individuals outside of the tech industry. After that, assign some of their engineers to solve those problems. I live in the Silicon Valley. The problem with the "focus groups," "usability studies," etc. are that they tend to focus on making existing products better (via UI, usability, etc.). I've always thought that it would be nice to simply have companies like Apple, Google, Samsung, etc. identifying problems before they build a product in the first place. When they find a trend that is common with more people, they should work to come up with solutions. For instance, I hate having to turn down the TV during commercial breaks (or for previews before or after a show). Wouldn't it be great for a smart TV to moderate the sound output so that it lowers the volume during commercial breaks? Advertisers might not like it, but consumers would be happy -- and they'd probably jump on a TV with that option. It would truly be a "smart" television.
Chris M yeah I very much agree, sort of what Steve Jobs wanted to achieve in a way with his philosophy of identifying a problem or a gap in the market and then figuring out what technology could solve that rather than coming up with a technology and trying to market it.
Such a great interview. Good questions and great answers which really helped me understand what's necessary for a company to thrive. And why I love Apple!
People who know what they're talking about basically inform and educate listeners with every word. People who don't know what they're talking about just bullshit others with the same bullshit they heard from others.
imagine meeting this guy in your younger years and influencing you on this kind of mindset. my life would be completely different and would not end up in an industry that im halfheartedly involved with and would be stressing about the things that i love doing.
Nah, I think Steve would have eventually done that. Tim Cook doing it was a cheap and easy way to emulate Steve Jobs, but I still think Steve would have done the same eventually.
Besides his brains, I've always admired his diplomacy, his positivity and his willingness to take a longer view. However, I think his (totally understandable) soft spot for Apple causes him to pull his punches a bit much.
Agree 💯. Apple has become at least in some ways the exact _opposite_ of what Woz envisioned when he co-founded it with Jobs. IPhones and iPads are completely locked down unless one jailbreaks, which is becoming less popular and has its risks & compromises. MacOS is at least Unix-based but also locked down; it's nice that Apple endorses BootCamp for those who want/need it. Woz designed the Apple I, II and IIe specifically to be open-source since his background was as a board guy and modder/tinkerer. You basically violate your Apple warranty these days if you dare so much as to open a Mac or i-device on your own, let alone try to change anything ! 😩
@@paulu_ You guys are the typical people who cherry pick one thing out of the many things somebody said and make an argument about it meanwhile completely ignoring the rest of his points. So just a translation he meant that apple devices mainly iPhones and iPads are limiting what you can do with them and if you want to do more with your own device that you own and paid for then you have to jailbreak it, or if you want to modify your Mac you will void your warranty just by opening it which is pretty dumb because once again if you paid for something you should be able to have 100% control it and do whatever you want with it without the bureaucratic bullshit. Im sorry but if a company sells you something and they say what you can do and what you cant with it then you dont really own it, its either yours or its not, it cant be 50-50.
Xalzor You *can* modify your hardware - you’ll just lose your warranty. It’s a very common practice among manufacturers. Why would they be responsible for you fucking up your own PC? iPads and iPhones are locked up - that’s true. Honestly, I’ve never had any intent to modify software on my phone, so that doesn’t bother me at all. But I know many people, who are bothered by it - those people are free to buy android phones. Nobody forces anyone to buy an iPhone. I’ve objected to the MacOS argument, because it was the only one that was objectively false. The rest of them were just matters of opinion.
Steve Wozniak is such a gem! He never lost that curiosity to find out how things work and build things, we often lose when we become adults. I feel I share so much in common.
Not long ago, I started reading a book named Innovators. The book tells the history of computer and the persons who invented it. The origin of Apple really impressed me. It made me want to know more about the legendary talent engineer Woz. So here I am.
Steve, you are the very last of a very few… engineers that can design the entire system… hw and sw. Congrats. Love your enthusiasm. I was a grad of Regnart, Kennedy and Lynbrook. ‘63 thru 1970.
@@scottyhaines4226 Please enlighten us with the motivations of a machine... ours come from our own biology; survival, procreation and knowing that we are going to die. You can make todays AI infinitely more powerful and it will still not have any real intelligence or motivation. Very useful for many things, and great things are coming in the future, but I believe it will remain a tool without it's own desires.
@@JoypadDivison In fact, I think that the lack of true motivation IS the danger. The autopilot itself has no motivation to get to neither Nairobi nor Sydney. But it does, and this without intelligently questioning the task. I'm with Elon and Scotty on this one.
Dear Steve, 10 years have passed, and we miss you so much. A true innovator, but also a philosopher. Your vision of the world is the one that inspires me everyday. Btw, I have full bio of Steve on my channel.
That would be a disaster considering how markets flow and given the avert mindset of consumers. Back in 197x the consumer was a different type of consumer.
@Sebaka & Co. Consumers haven’t really changed but the nature of the stock market has. It seems like CEOs only exist now to please shareholders, which is kinda what your comment leads to. The problem with that is that companies fall apart if they just try to please shareholders. Look at GE for example.
By doing what you love, you have the chance of doing the best things. Most companies looks for profits in the first place, so they'll never be the best. Money should be the consequence, never the goal.
It's amazing this extreme split in focus between Woz and Jobs. Woz 100% focused on making innovative tech, even if nobody would want them, and then Jobs 100% focused on making the things people will want the most incl. user experience.
