Some might say the tech game is like the rap game—no matter the fame, fortune, or success a CEO achieves—drama is bound to follow. Since the early ‘90s, the industry’s brightest and most innovative visionaries have verbally slandered their adversaries over business, ethical, or personal matters. Some chose to play it smooth like Jay Z and keep it subliminal. Others got into 50 Cent mode and named names. Like your beef served well done? From competitive threats to life-time frenemies, here's a History of Tech CEOs Talking Smack About Their Rivals.
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Money Ain't A Thing
Jealous One's Envy
Kharma Comes to Collect
Date: April 20, 1995
Target: John Sculley
Shot fired: "John Sculley ruined Apple and he ruined it by bringing a set of values to the top of Apple which were corrupt and corrupted some of the top people who were there, drove out some of the ones who were not corruptible, and brought in more corrupt ones and paid themselves collectively tens of millions of dollars and cared more about their own glory and wealth than they did about what built Apple in the first place—which was making great computers for people to use."—Steve Jobs
Everyone knows the backstory between Steve Jobs and former Apple CEO John Sculley. Once Sculley exited the company, our favorite tech visionary decided to kill his adversary with kindness scathing remarks exposing the exec's dirty laundry during an interview with the Smithsonian Institute. Payback's a mutha!