Jon Rubinstein

Jon Rubinstein
Born	New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Electrical engineer, technology executive
Years active	1980s–present
Known for	Development of Apple's iMac and iPod

Jonathan J. "Jon" Rubinstein (born October 1956) is an American electrical engineer notable for his instrumental contributions to the development of Apple's iMac and the portable music and video player, the iPod, which debuted in 2001. He held the position of senior vice president overseeing Apple's iPod division until April 14, 2006.

In October 2007, Rubinstein took on the role of executive chairman at Palm, Inc. after private equity firm Elevation Partners made a major investment in the company. He was named CEO of Palm in 2009, replacing Ed Colligan. Following HP’s acquisition of Palm on July 1, 2010, Rubinstein assumed an executive position at HP before departing in January 2012.

Since December 2010, Rubinstein has served on the board of directors for online retailer Amazon.com. He was also a board member at semiconductor company Qualcomm from May 2013 until May 2016 and acted as co-CEO of investment firm Bridgewater Associates between March 2016 and March 2017.

Rubinstein's innovative work in personal computing and consumer electronics earned him election to the National Academy of Engineering in 2005. Additionally, he holds senior membership within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

Early years and education

Born and raised in New York City, Rubinstein grew up with a mother who earned a PhD from Rutgers University. He completed his secondary education at the Horace Mann School in 1975. He then attained a B.S. degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University in 1978, followed by a master’s degree in the same discipline in 1979. During his time at Cornell, he participated in activities at the student-operated radio station, WVBR. Subsequently, he earned an M.S. degree in computer science from Colorado State University.

Rubinstein’s professional journey began in Ithaca, where he worked both at a local computer retail outlet and as a design consultant for a computer manufacturer.

Hewlett-Packard, Ardent

Following graduation, Rubinstein joined Hewlett-Packard in Colorado, dedicating two years to manufacturing engineering with an emphasis on quality assurance and process enhancements. He later contributed to the development of HP workstations.

In 1986, he relocated to Silicon Valley to become part of startup Ardent Computer Corp., later renamed Stardent. There, he played a pivotal role in launching the Titan Graphics Supercomputer alongside the Stardent 3000 Graphics Supercomputer.

NeXT

In 1990, Rubinstein was recruited by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs to lead hardware engineering efforts at NeXT. He managed development of NeXT’s RISC-based workstation—a high-performance graphics system that ultimately was never released due to NeXT’s strategic shift toward software-only products in 1993.

After NeXT exited hardware production, Rubinstein founded Power House Systems (later Firepower Systems), supported by Canon Inc., which produced high-performance systems built around the PowerPC chip using NeXT technology. This venture was acquired by Motorola in 1996.

Apple Computer

Following Apple’s acquisition of NeXT, Rubinstein had planned an extended break; however, Steve Jobs—then serving as an unpaid Apple advisor—invited him to join Apple amid its struggles with waning innovation and financial losses.

Rubinstein became part of Apple in February 1997 after a fiscal year marked by an $816 million loss. He accepted the role because, as he stated to The New York Times, "Apple was the last innovative high-volume computer maker in the world."

As Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering and member of Apple’s executive team, Rubinstein oversaw hardware design, industrial design, and low-level software development while significantly influencing Apple’s technology direction and product planning.

Upon joining Apple, Rubinstein encountered a fragmented product portfolio exceeding fifteen lines that were widely criticized for subpar quality. The hardware division suffered from poor coordination—multiple teams independently developed overlapping products without ensuring compatibility. Together with Jobs, Rubinstein addressed these challenges.

He implemented rigorous cost-reduction strategies that cut expenses by half through comprehensive project evaluations. The Power Macintosh G3—a fast desktop based on PowerPC architecture—was chosen as Apple's next flagship product. Released late in 1997, it signaled Apple's re-entry into competitive desktop computing markets.

In 1997, Jobs streamlined Apple’s product focus to just desktop and laptop computers targeting consumer and professional segments. While the G3 catered to professionals, Apple developed the iMac as an entry-level consumer offering under Rubinstein’s leadership. His team delivered the iMac within a demanding eleven-month timeframe. Introduced in 1998, its groundbreaking design revitalized Apple’s brand and helped establish USB as an industry standard. Notably, Rubinstein decided against including a floppy disk drive, favoring optical drives along with emerging data transfer technologies like USB and FireWire.

Under Rubinstein’s guidance, Apple launched subsequent iterations of its Power Mac line—the G4 and G5 models. Although these were powerful machines, they were often perceived as slower compared to Intel-based PCs because of lower clock speeds. Rubinstein contributed to popularizing awareness around the "Megahertz myth," clarifying that PowerPC performance should not be directly compared solely on clock speed against Intel processors.

iPod development

Confronted with declining Mac sales, Apple broadened its ecosystem to enhance consumer engagement by introducing the iPod as part of its "digital hub" initiative. At that time, existing digital music players were either cumbersome or poorly engineered, prompting Apple to develop a superior alternative despite limited prior success in the market.

By 2000, Steve Jobs had expressed interest in a portable music device, but the necessary technology components were not yet available. In February 2001, Rubinstein identified Toshiba's compact 1.8-inch hard disk drive—crucial for the iPod's design—and secured Jobs' approval for a $10 million investment. Leading an accelerated eight-month development effort, Rubinstein’s team tackled technical obstacles such as achieving long battery life and enabling mass production of the sleek metal casing. The debut iPod quickly achieved commercial success.

By 2004, the iPod segment had expanded sufficiently to become a distinct division under Rubinstein’s leadership. Later models enhanced storage capacity, reduced size, and introduced features like color displays and video playback. By early 2008, sales surpassed 119 million units, solidifying the iPod as the leading portable media player and one of the most successful consumer electronics products.

Known as the "Podfather," Rubinstein also cultivated a thriving accessory market—including speakers, chargers, and docks—generating over $1 billion annually by 2006 through third-party manufacturers collectively termed "The iPod Ecosystem." In fiscal 2007, iPod revenue reached $8.3 billion, accounting for roughly one-third of Apple’s total sales.

By late 2005, Rubinstein became increasingly frustrated with Tim Cook’s growing influence as COO and conflicts with SVP of Industrial Design Jony Ive, whose expensive design vision conflicted with Rubinstein’s practical approach. Ultimately, Jobs sided with Ive.

In October 2005, Apple announced Rubinstein’s retirement effective March 31, 2006; he was succeeded by Tony Fadell. Rubinstein continued part-time consulting. With the forthcoming launch of the iPhone, Jobs shifted focus toward younger engineering talent, reducing Rubinstein’s involvement and leading to his exit.

Palm

In 2007, Rubinstein joined Palm as executive chairman and soon resigned as chairman of Immersion Corp., a company specializing in haptic technology. He assumed responsibility for Palm’s product development, reorganizing R&D teams and simplifying product lines. Rubinstein was instrumental in developing the webOS platform and introducing the Palm Pre at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. On June 10, 2009—shortly after the Pre’s successful debut—he was promoted to CEO of Palm.

The Palm Pre launched on Sprint and set a sales record with 50,000 units sold during its opening weekend. The subsequent Palm Pixi was announced in September 2009 and released on Sprint in November. Rubinstein prioritized expanding carrier partnerships and geographic reach, resulting in the launch of Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus on Verizon Wireless in January 2010. AT&T also revealed plans to offer Palm’s webOS devices later that year.

Despite these initiatives, by February 2010 Palm reported disappointing sales figures and lowered its forecasts. Rubinstein’s prominence in the tech sector increased; he appeared on the premiere episode of "The Engadget Show" in September 2009. In December 2009, Fast Company recognized him as one of its Geeks of the Year alongside Mark Zuckerberg and J.J. Abrams and included him among its "100 most creative people in business."

Hewlett-Packard (Return Tenure)

In 2010, Rubinstein reentered HP following its $1.2 billion purchase of Palm, with the objective of enhancing HP's standing in the mobile device sector and revitalizing Palm's technology. He committed to remain with HP for a period ranging from one to two years after the acquisition.

HP intended to utilize webOS across a variety of hardware, such as smartphones and printers, emphasizing cloud integration to synchronize user data seamlessly among devices.

The webOS-powered TouchPad was introduced on July 1, 2011. Shortly thereafter, Rubinstein shifted from managing the webOS division to assuming a role focused on product innovation within HP. Despite early enthusiasm, the TouchPad suffered from poor market performance and was discontinued within seven weeks. A significant price reduction to $99 triggered a surge in demand, leading it to be recognized as one of the most notable technology products of 2011.

In the wake of these events, CEO Leo Apotheker was replaced by Meg Whitman less than a month later. In December 2011, Whitman announced intentions to release webOS as open source software, marking a change in strategic direction.

Rubinstein exited HP on January 27, 2012, upon completion of his contract. He stated that he would not retire but instead take a hiatus, underscoring his belief that "the future is mobile."

Bridgewater

Rubinstein joined Qualcomm’s board in May 2013; Qualcomm is a prominent supplier of mobile chips. Additionally, he has been serving on Amazon.com’s board since December 2010.

In March 2016, Rubinstein was appointed co-CEO of Bridgewater Associates, recognized as the world’s largest hedge fund. His appointment highlighted the critical role of technology within the firm and involved replacing Greg Jensen in that capacity while Jensen continued as co-chief investment officer. However, less than twelve months later, Rubinstein left Bridgewater by mutual agreement with founder Ray Dalio, as it became evident that he did not align well with the company culture.

Personal life

Rubinstein is married to Karen Richardson, an experienced professional in the technology sector who currently serves on the board of BT Group plc.

Affiliations

• Member of the National Academy of Engineering
• Senior Member of IEEE
• Board Director at Amazon.com
• Member of Cornell Silicon Valley Advisors
• Former Board Director at Immersion Corp.
• Past member of Cornell Alumni Council
• Former participant on the Consumer Electronics Association Board of Industry Leaders