Thaindian News

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) — U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday hailed former Apple CEO Steve Jobs as one of the greatest of American innovators, adding that the world has lost a visionary with his death.

Apple’s Board of Directors and Jobs’ family confirmed in two separate statements released earlier that Jobs, the iconic entrepreneur who co-founded Apple in the 1970s, died in California on Wednesday. A brief statement said he died peacefully while surrounded by his family.

“Michelle and I are saddened to learn of the passing of Steve Jobs,” Obama said in a statement released by the White House Press Office. “Steve was among the greatest of American innovators - brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.”

The U.S. president said Jobs ‘exemplified’ the spirit of American ingenuity by building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his parent’s garage in Los Altos, a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula in California.

“By making computers personal and putting the internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun,” Obama said. “And by turning his talents to storytelling, he has brought joy to millions of children and grownups alike.”

Obama added: “Steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last. Because he did, he transformed our lives, redefined entire industries, and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history: he changed the way each of us sees the world.”

The president said he and his wife Michelle send their thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him. “The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented,” Obama added.

Steve Jobs was 56.