“The engineering is long gone in most PC companies. In the consumer electronics companies, they don’t understand the software parts of it. And so you really can’t make the products that you can make at Apple anywhere else right now. Apple’s the only company that has everything under one roof.”
- February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011
- American
- Entrepreneur, businessman, industrial designer
- He brought to the world revolutionary products that combined technology and design at a high level, such as the personal computer Macintosh, iPhone, and iPad, and also revolutionized the music industry with the iPod, iTunes, and iTunes Store.
Quote
“The engineering is long gone in most PC companies. In the consumer electronics companies, they don’t understand the software parts of it. And so you really can’t make the products that you can make at Apple anywhere else right now. Apple’s the only company that has everything under one roof.”
Explanation
In this quote, Steve Jobs highlights Apple’s unique advantage in the tech industry—its ability to integrate hardware and software development under one roof. Jobs points out that most PC companies have moved away from the engineering excellence that Apple maintains, while many consumer electronics companies fail to fully understand the software side of technology. This division of labor, according to Jobs, limits the ability of competitors to create products that rival Apple’s innovative and seamless offerings. Apple’s strength, in Jobs’ view, is its ability to design and engineer both the hardware and the software in-house, allowing the company to create highly optimized and cohesive products like the iPhone, Mac, and iPad.
Jobs believed that this vertical integration was crucial to achieving the level of innovation Apple became known for. By controlling every aspect of the product, from design to user interface to hardware performance, Apple was able to ensure that each component worked together harmoniously, delivering an exceptional user experience. Unlike many competitors who were focused on just one side of the equation—either hardware or software—Apple’s approach allowed it to create truly revolutionary products that no other company could replicate.
Today, Apple’s integration of hardware and software remains a core philosophy, allowing the company to maintain control over its ecosystem and continually push the boundaries of what technology can achieve. This holistic approach is seen in products like the Apple Watch, iPhone, and MacBooks, all of which offer seamless experiences because of the company’s unique ability to merge engineering with software design. Jobs’ words serve as a reminder of the value in creating products that are deeply integrated, where every element is designed to work together to create an optimal experience.
