Apple $AAPL Inc. is a U.S. technology company that designs, manufactures, and sells consumer electronics, software, and digital services. Founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne in a garage in Los Altos, California, it is headquartered in Cupertino, California, and is one of the most recognized corporations in the world.
The company's hardware lineup includes the iPhone, its flagship smartphone and primary revenue driver; the Mac line of personal computers; the iPad tablet; the Apple Watch; and wireless audio products including AirPods. On the software side, Apple develops the iOS, macOS, iPadOS, and watchOS operating systems that power its devices. Its services segment — which includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, iCloud, and Apple Pay — has grown into a substantial and high-margin part of the business.
Apple operates a tightly integrated ecosystem in which its hardware, software, and services are designed to work together, a model that distinguishes it from competitors who license their software to third-party device makers. The App Store, launched in 2008, became a central marketplace for mobile software and a significant source of revenue, though it has drawn antitrust scrutiny in multiple jurisdictions.
The company went public in 1980 and trades on the Nasdaq $NDAQ under the ticker AAPL. It has ranked among the largest companies in the world by market capitalization for much of the past two decades, a position it has at times shared or contested with other major technology firms. Apple is also known for its retail stores, which number in the hundreds globally and serve as both sales channels and brand touchpoints..