The iPhone, the iPad, the Mac… yes, but Apple co-founder Steve Jobs also left his mark on the nautical world with a beautiful work of minimalist design as mysterious as it is fascinating: the yacht Venus. A personal project that began as a whimsical idea and ended up becoming one of the most iconic yachts in the world.
Venus: a superyacht with the soul of an Apple product
It all began around 2007. Jobs, inspired by his holidays on the yacht of Larry Ellison, founder of Oracle, decided that he wanted one of his own. And, as you might expect, it was not going to be just any boat.
To shape this idea, he turned to Philippe Starck, one of the most renowned designers in the world. Although it was not entirely easy.
It turns out that Jobs called Starck’s studio in Paris, but the call never reached its destination. The secretary noted down the message without attaching any importance to it. A certain Mr. Jobs had called. Nothing more. She did not insist, she did not ask questions, she did not interrupt her boss. And Jobs, for his part, hung up without leaving a number.
Seen in hindsight, Starck himself summed it up with a certain disbelief: “Can you imagine Steve Jobs’s aura in 2007? He was practically God. And she didn’t put the call through because she didn’t know who he was. We were off to a great start.”
That could have ended there. In fact, knowing Jobs’s character (who saved one family’s Christmas in 1998 and drove a Mercedes), it would have been the expected outcome. But weeks later, the phone rang again.
This time, the scene was different. Starck was about to leave for Milan, practically already getting into the car that was taking him to the airport, when someone burst in urgently: “Monsieur Starck! Do you know someone called Mr. Jobs? He wants to speak to you.” This time he did manage to take the call, though only just.
Jobs got straight to the point: “Do you want to make me a yacht?” Starck, surprised, replied with a simple, “Well… yes.” There was barely time for anything else. Jobs added one final question: “Will you know how to do it?” Starck’s answer was unexpected and amusing: “Of course. I have webbed fingers and scales on my back. I’m amphibious.”
The next meeting was calmer. Starck turned up with a huge suitcase full of designs, sketches and proposals. After showing them, silence followed. Jobs was watching. And then he said something unusual for him: “It’s more than I ever could have imagined.” Starck remembers it as a key moment, almost impossible to repeat. The man known for his extreme demands was admitting that it exceeded his expectations.
From that point on, the project began to take shape until it became what would eventually be Venus. A superyacht nearly 80 metres long, defined by a very clear aesthetic: aluminium and glass, clean lines, a sense of lightness, and a minimalist elegance that clearly recalls Apple products. In fact, its main deck directly evokes the design of some Apple Stores, such as the one in Chicago, where the glass and the structure seem to merge into a single piece. Truly, Venus is the closest thing to a “floating Apple” we have seen.
Steve Jobs’s superyacht: a project full of detail and mystery
Over the years, small details about the yacht have gradually become known, but its interior remains almost entirely a mystery, and there are no official photos.
Venus has capacity for 12 passengers and a crew of around 10 people. And although we have seen it in different ports, especially around the Mediterranean, it remains an object of constant curiosity. Every appearance generates headlines, such as when it was involved in a minor incident with another yacht.
Today the yacht belongs to Laurene Powell Jobs, who uses it fairly often. And it is precisely that discreet use that keeps its aura of mystery alive.
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