On August 24, 2011, just six weeks before his death, Apple cofounder Steve Jobs announced his resignation as CEO. On the eve of his own leaving,Tim Cook now seems to have been his obvious successor, but back then, he was an unexpected and even controversial choice.



Steve Jobs' resignation followed a previous leave of absence from the company starting in January 2011, during which Cook had served as acting CEO. Jobs's formal stepping down was an unmistakable end of an era for the company, and a very different departure from the first time he had left Apple, in 1985.

The resignation followed a multi-year saga in which the executive was widely assumed to be in failing health. But, Jobs was not always forthright about the exact nature and severity of his illness.


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