- Title: Museum and customers celebrate Apple's 'incredible history' on 50th anniversary
- Date: 2nd April 2026
- Summary: PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (APRIL 1, 2026) (REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF APPLE STORE (SOUNDBITE)(EnglIsh) EUGENIA ROCHELLES, RESIDENT FROM LIVERMORE, CALIFORNIA, SAYING: "I had a flip phone and, you know, with a really tiny screen on it because it was a flip phone. And I remember thinking when I got my first iPhone that wow, the screen is so much bigger, this is
- Embargoed:
- Keywords: ANNIVERSARY APPLE COMPUTERS IPHONE TECH
- Location: PALO ALTO + MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- City: PALO ALTO + MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: US
- Topics: Information Technologies / Computer Sciences,North America,Science
- Reuters ID: LVA001936201042026RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: In early 1976 in California, Steve Wozniak had just completed the design of a computer circuit board he intended to share with fellow hobbyists at a prominent local club. His friend Steve Jobs also saw a business opportunity to manufacture and sell the boards, and thus Apple was born.
The company turns 50 on Wednesday (April 1). Its rise has shaped both the technology industry and popular culture by making first desktop computers and then smartphones mainstream, popularizing mobile apps and showing how tightly integrated devices and software can work.
Hansen Hu, curator at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, told Reuters, "One of the reasons why Apple has such an impact on the industry is because they are willing to innovate on design and push new designs for how computers should be built. And often, the rest of the industry is content to just do what everybody else is doing. Or maybe then copy Apple when Apple comes up with something new."
But the iPhone maker is now under pressure to show it can remain a technology powerhouse in the age of artificial intelligence as software rivals Alphabet and Microsoft spend tens of billions of dollars to seize a lead.
Its stock is the second-worst performer among the "Magnificent Seven" since OpenAI launched ChatGPT in November 2022.
Despite embedding machine learning features in its chips since 2017, analysts and investors say delays in roll-out of features, including a revamped Siri, suggest Apple was underprepared for how consumers would use AI.
Rivals such as OpenAI are also planning to launch AI devices that aim to shake the long-held dominance of smartphones.
Still, Apple's devices remain widely popular.
Strong demand for the latest iPhone 17 series drove its December-quarter earnings, while the $599 MacBook Neo - its cheapest laptop ever - had a strong launch.
(Production: Elizabeth Mendez) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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