[One Thousand Characters a Day] Apple Nvidia Shockwave <2>

Editor's NoteAlthough Apple is not officially a semiconductor company, it has steadily grown amid the semiconductor downturn by producing its own semiconductor chips that surpass Intel and Samsung. With the high performance of the A series chips used in iPhones and the M series chips used in Mac laptops, Apple has solidified its "Apple ecosystem," and by designing software such as iOS and macOS in-house, it also outperforms other devices using operating systems (OS) like Android (Google) or Windows (MS) in terms of semiconductor performance optimization. When did Apple start focusing on semiconductor capabilities? It dates back as far as 2007, 17 years ago. Now, Apple is signaling the future mobile chip war with the on-device AI integration of its Mac PC line through the self-developed AI semiconductor chip M4 in 2024, and the launch of iPhones equipped with Google's generative AI Gemini. Word count: 1044 characters.

"People who are 'serious' about software must make hardware themselves."

Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple, said this while introducing the first iPhone in 2007. Is there a more dramatic way to describe Apple, which makes both its operating system (OS) and hardware? Jobs said this was a quote from Alan Kay 30 years earlier. Kay was a computer scientist at PARC (the company known for making copiers) who inspired Jobs to develop the Macintosh (Mac) PC. After visiting PARC in 1979, Jobs decided to create a 'Mac PC' that was completely different from the PCs he had made before. Jobs was deeply impressed by the GUI and mouse ideas he saw at PARC. He later developed the GUI computers Lisa and Mac. This much is well known.

Kay, a software expert, created object-oriented programming and 'Smalltalk,' the precursor to the 'C++' language. He did not stop at software but also introduced the prototype of a tablet PC called the 'Dynabook.' He emphasized the integration of hardware and software. Jobs brought Kay into Apple. Kay also connected Jobs with Pixar, a computer animation company. After Jobs was ousted from Apple, Pixar, which he invested in, achieved great success with the animation Toy Story. Pixar became the stepping stone for Jobs' comeback. By now, one can imagine the extent of Kay's influence on Jobs.

Although Jobs developed the Mac PC using a GUI, there was a flaw in the Mac PC he created. The CPU running the PC still bore the trademark of companies other than Apple. Kay's vision could not be fully realized. In the 1980s, it was unimaginable for PC companies to produce semiconductors. That role belonged to Intel, Motorola, and IBM.

At the end of Jobs' iPhone announcement presentation, a quote from legendary ice hockey player Wayne Gretzky was projected on the screen. Jobs said it was one of his favorite sayings and began with it.

"I skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been."

This represents Apple's spirit of always challenging new things and moving toward the future.

－Baek Jong-min, Apple Nvidia Shockwave, Sejong Books, 23,000 KRW