Circa 1976: The early days Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs are pictured in this file photo

of the company's early days. The tech giant was founded in 1976 by the pair of high school friends. A power struggle spurred Mr. Jobs to leave Apple in 1985. He returned in September 1997 as Apple's interim chief executive officer after the company lost more than $1.8-billion (U.S.), according to Reuters.

1977: Apple II is released Steve Jobs introduces the new Apple II computer in Cupertino, California, in this 1977 file photo. This was the first personal computer in a plastic case with colour graphics. Apple was incorporated in California on January 3, 1977.

1984: Apple introduces the Macintosh personal computer

Steve Jobs, chairman of the board of Apple Computer, following a shareholder's meeting in Cupertino, Ca. on Jan. 24, 1984. Apple started selling the "Lisa", a desktop computer made for business, the previous year. In 1984, Apple debuted its personal computer, the Macintosh. 1998: The year of the iMac Mr. Jobs holds the first iMac desktop computer in this 1998 file photo. 1999: Apple keeps growing Steve Jobs delivering a keynote speech at the 1999 Apple Worldwide Developer Conference in San Jose. 2001: Launch of the revolutionary iPod The brand new MP3 player, the iPod, is held by Mr. Jobs on October 23, 2001. In its first version, the music player could hold up to 1,000 "CD quality" songs. It weighed 6.5 ounces. (The current version, which can hold up to 40,000 songs, weighs only 4.9 ounces.) 2003: iTunes shakes up music industry Goodbye, Napster. Hello, iTunes! Steve Jobs explains Apple's new online music store at its launch in San Francisco on April 28, 2003. Five major record labels offered more than 200,000 songs at the online store for 99 cents a piece. 2004: Steve Jobs undergoes cancer surgery Steve Jobs stands with several display screens as he previews Tiger, the new Mac OS X operating system, on June 28 2004. Mr. Jobs underwent surgery in 2004 to remove a cancerous tumor from his pancreas. The surgery was successful. Tim Cook ran Apple's day-to-day operations while Mr. Jobs was recovering. 2007: iPhone's debut Steve jobs holds the new, hyped iPhone on January 9, 2007. The touch screen phone had 8 gigabytes of memory and sold for $599. Apple's shares skyrocketed after the launch. 2009-2010: Jobs takes another medical leave Mr. Jobs took another leave for his health in January 2009. He returned in June after he had a liver transplant. Tim Cook, then chief operating officer, ran Apple in his absence.

Here the men are pictured at a news conference regarding the iPhone 4's antenna problems on July 16, 2010. 2010: Launch of the iPad Steve Jobs announces the iPad - Apple's market leading tablet - on January 27, 2010 in San Francisco 2011: Apple becomes biggest company in U.S. On August 9, 2011, Apple briefly surpassed oil and gas company Exxon to become the United States' largest company. Customers purchase at Apple's New York City store on August 24, 2011. 2011: Tim Cook becomes CEO Mr. Cook will replace Mr. Jobs as the chief executive officer of Apple. Mr. Jobs resigned on August 24, 2011. In this file photo, Tim Cook smiles before the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco on June 8, 2009.