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Apple Computer was founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak

On this day · 1 April 1976
45 sec read

On April Fools' Day 1976 three men signed a partnership to sell a hand-built computer board for $666.66.

Verified · Computer History Museum

On April 1, 1976, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and a third partner, Ronald Wayne, signed an agreement forming the Apple Computer Company. Their first product was the Apple-1, a hand-built circuit board Wozniak had designed, priced at a memorable $666.66. The deal split ownership three ways: Jobs and Wozniak took 45 percent each, Wayne the remaining 10 percent.

Wayne’s stake did not last. Wary of the debts a fledgling venture might run up, he sold his share back to the two Steves for $800 less than two weeks later — a decision that, against Apple’s later valuation, became one of history’s costliest cases of cold feet.

A company that would reshape personal computing began as a three-man partnership and a board built in a garage.

Apple was not incorporated until the following January, but the partnership signed that spring marks the true beginning of the firm.

$666.66
Apple-1 price
3
co-founders
$800
Wayne's sold stake

Sources & references

2 references

Well-established. Corroborated by 2 independent sources.

1 Computer History Museum institution “Apple Computer Company is founded as a partnership between Jobs, Woz, and Ron Wayne. (Listed under April 1, 1976.)” computerhistory.org ↗
2 Cult of Mac — Apple founded to sell Apple-1 computer news “April 1, 1976: The Apple Computer Company is founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne... Less than two weeks after the company's founding, Wayne cashed in his Apple shares for $800.” cultofmac.com ↗
✓ Last reviewed Jun 7, 2026

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