Apple is reporting that co-founder and longtime CEO of the company, Steve Jobs, has died at the age of 56. “We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today,” the company said in a brief statement. Steve Jobs, the mastermind behind Apple’s iPhone, iPad, iPod, iMac and iTunes, has died, Apple said.
No word on the circumstances surrounding Jobs’ death, but he had been battling a rare form of pancreatic cancer for years.
He stepped down as CEO earlier this year. He had left Apple previously in 1985 but returned in 1996 and created one of the largest tech company turnarounds in US history.
In 2004, he beat back an unusual form of pancreatic cancer, and in 2009 he was forced to get a liver transplant.
After several years of failing health, Jobs announced on Aug. 24, 2011 that he was stepping down as Apple’s chief executive.
