Do you know about the 1997 Apple bailout by Bill Gates?
Some people say it was just a business decision but I don't think Bill Gates wanted to save Apple, he actually wanted to save Steve Jobs.
That basically means he saved his own rivalry, why would anyone do that?
The media made it look like $150 million was the actual story, but if you look at how big Microsoft is, you can tell that investment didn’t even scratch Microsoft’s wallet. I think that this was really about legacy and about two people who understood each other more than anyone else did.
At that time, Steve Jobs had just returned to Apple and it looked like a startup on life support. The guy had to swallow his pride to be able tp reach out to the one person who could save it, Bill Gates.
Wasn't Gates the same guy that Steve fought against both publicly and privately for a very long time?
At the time Steve needed help, it wasn’t about beating Microsoft anymore, he realized Apple had lost sight of itself completely and I think the name thing is happening right with the company going very low when it comes to innovation, new features and stock market.
Steve Jobs did something powerful because not many people could admit something like that and especially someone like Steve.
People booed Gates at the MacWorld conference when this news was announced. They knew Apple was a rival company so why support it. I don't think this was a sign of admitting defeat for Apple but it was a means to survive. Apple didn’t just get cash from Bill Gates but they got a second chance to prove themselves and they really have.
By doing this, Microsoft gained a partnership that allowed it to shape Mac’s software ecosystem. In those final moments between Gates and Jobs, it wasn’t about competition anymore but about mutual respect. They acknowledged that even in a competition they still needed each other. I've learned from this story not to let my ego stop me from asking for help when I need it.