Stepstone

NeXT, Inc.

NeXT logo designed by Paul Rand
Company type	Private
Industry	Computer hardware, software
Founded	1985 in Redwood City, California, U.S.
Founder	Steve Jobs
Defunct	1997
Fate	Acquired by Apple Inc.
Headquarters	Redwood City, California , United States
Products	NeXT Computer, NeXTcube, NeXTstation, NeXTSTEP operating system, OPENSTEP, WebObjects
Number of employees	(not specified)
Parent	Apple Inc. (from 1997)

NeXT, Inc.—which later became known as NeXT Computer, Inc. and subsequently NeXT Software, Inc.—was a U.S.-based technology firm located in Redwood City, California. The company specialized in producing computer workstations aimed primarily at the higher education sector and business clientele, before advancing into innovative software for dynamic web pages. Established in 1985 by Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple Computer who had been ousted that same year, NeXT introduced the NeXT Computer in 1988. This was followed by the release of the NeXTcube and a more compact model called the NeXTstation in 1990. Despite limited commercial success—shipping roughly 50,000 units—the company's advancements in object-oriented programming and graphical user interfaces had a profound impact on technological development.

In partnership with Sun Microsystems, NeXT helped create OpenStep, a software development environment that modularized the application layer of the NeXTSTEP operating system to operate on multiple third-party platforms. By 1993, NeXT ceased hardware production to concentrate on promoting OPENSTEP for Mach, their OpenStep implementation compatible with various vendor systems. Additionally, NeXT developed WebObjects, an early enterprise-level web framework, recognized for its ability to generate dynamic web content despite its premium pricing.

Apple purchased NeXT in 1997 for $427 million, which included 1.5 million shares of Apple stock. This acquisition marked Steve Jobs’s return to Apple as an advisor and initiated the merging of OPENSTEP with the classic Mac OS, leading to the creation of Rhapsody and ultimately Mac OS X.

Numerous significant applications can trace their origins back to NeXT, such as the very first web browser and popular video games like Doom and Quake.

Background

In 1985, Steve Jobs, co-founder and then CEO of Apple, was heading the SuperMicro division responsible for developing the Macintosh and Lisa computers. These products gained traction within university environments, supported by Jobs’s direct engagement and through the Apple University Consortium—a discounted academic marketing initiative that had generated over $50 million in sales by early 1984.

Jobs encountered Nobel Prize winner Paul Berg at a Silicon Valley luncheon held in honor of French President François Mitterrand. Berg expressed frustration over the expense and duration of recombinant DNA experiments conducted in wet labs and proposed that Jobs develop a "3M computer" specifically designed for higher education purposes. Motivated by this idea amid growing internal challenges at Apple, Jobs contemplated founding a company focused on educational computing.

However, Jobs’s division struggled to deliver upgraded Macintosh models and much of the Macintosh Office software suite, resulting in declining sales and forcing Apple to write off millions worth of unsold stock.

In 1985, following internal power shifts at Apple, John Sculley replaced Jobs with Jean-Louis Gassée as head of the division. After a board decision favoring Sculley during a corporate power struggle, Jobs resigned in September 1985. He declared his intention to establish a new computer company aimed at education markets, planning to bring along several SuperMicro team members. Jobs also assured that his new enterprise would avoid direct competition with Apple and might even license some Macintosh technologies.

Initial NeXT Team

NeXT was established by Steve Jobs alongside several ex-Apple staff members, such as Joanna Hoffman, Bud Tribble, George Crow, Rich Page, Susan Barnes, Susan Kare, and Dan'l Lewin. After extensive consultations with prominent educational purchasers across the country, including Paul Berg, a preliminary set of requirements was created for a workstation computer aimed at running wet lab simulations while remaining affordable for student dormitories. Prior to finalizing these specifications, Apple filed a lawsuit against NeXT on September 23, 1985, accusing the company of exploiting insider information. Jobs responded by emphasizing the difficulty of a $2 billion corporation taking on a small team of six individuals. Ultimately, the lawsuit was dismissed before reaching trial.

In 1986, Jobs engaged graphic designer Paul Rand for a $100,000 branding initiative. Rand produced an in-depth 20-page document that defined the brand identity, detailing elements such as the logo’s exact 28° tilt and the revised spelling of the company name as NeXT.

First Generation

By mid-1986, NeXT revised its strategy to encompass both hardware and software development. Hardware efforts were led by cofounder Rich Page, who had previously worked on Apple’s Lisa project, while kernel engineer Avie Tevanian spearheaded the creation of the NeXTSTEP operating system. The company inaugurated its initial manufacturing facility in Fremont, California, in 1987, with an annual production capacity of 150,000 units. The debut workstation, known as the NeXT Computer and affectionately nicknamed "the cube," featured a distinctive magnesium cubic enclosure designed by Hartmut Esslinger at Frog Design.

In 1987, investor Ross Perot contributed $20 million in exchange for a 16% ownership stake after viewing a PBS documentary segment about NeXT. He subsequently joined the board in 1988.

NeXT collaborated with Adobe to implement Display PostScript (DPS), a two-dimensional graphics engine launched in 1987. Engineers at NeXT adapted DPS to serve as the foundation for NeXTSTEP’s windowing interface.

The NeXT Computer was officially introduced on October 12, 1988, to widespread praise during a private event in San Francisco. The following day featured a technical presentation aimed at developers, with Steve Jobs delivering the keynote address.

Pilot releases began in 1989 targeting American higher education institutions; these units came preloaded with NeXTSTEP 0.9 beta and carried a starting price of $6,500. Jobs characterized the product as being "five years ahead of its time."

The machine incorporated a 25 MHz Motorola 68030 processor after supply constraints prevented use of the initially intended Motorola 88000 RISC chip. Specifications included between 8 and 64 MB of RAM, a 256 MB magneto-optical (MO) drive manufactured by Canon Inc., hard drives up to 660 MB capacity, Ethernet networking capabilities, and a high-resolution (1120×832 pixels) 17-inch MegaPixel grayscale display. Notably, it was the first computer to ship with a general-purpose DSP chip (Motorola 56001), enabling advanced audio processing through Music Kit software.

While innovative, the MO drive exhibited slower performance compared to traditional hard disks and had limited file transfer speeds. Jobs negotiated favorable pricing with Canon to retail MO disks at $50 apiece.

In 1989, NeXT formed an international distribution partnership with Businessland, marking a transition from direct sales focused solely on educational institutions. Businessland’s founder predicted that NeXT’s sales would surpass those of Compaq within twelve months.

That same year, Canon invested $100 million for a 16.67% equity stake in NeXT, valuing the company at approximately $600 million. This investment facilitated broader adoption of NeXTSTEP as Canon integrated it into its own workstation series named object.station, which was marketed throughout Japan.

The commercial release of the NeXT Computer occurred in 1990 with a retail price of $9,999. In June 1991, Ross Perot stepped down from NeXT’s board to concentrate on his software enterprise Perot Systems.

Second generation

In 1990, NeXT unveiled its second-generation workstations: the updated NeXTcube and the NeXTstation, the latter often called "the slab" due to its slim profile. Steve Jobs discouraged the "pizza box" nickname to avoid confusion with Sun Microsystems' workstation design.

Although initially intended to include a 2.88 MB floppy disk drive, NeXT opted instead for a CD-ROM drive because of floppy disk costs and their declining market relevance, aligning with evolving storage trends in the industry. Both the NeXTstation Color and NeXTcube supported color graphics through the NeXTdimension graphics card. Equipped with the newer Motorola 68040 processor, these models offered improved speed and reduced prices compared to earlier versions.

By 1992, "Turbo" editions of these systems were introduced, featuring a 33 MHz 68040 CPU and expanded memory capacity up to 128 MB. That year, NeXT sold roughly 20,000 units—including upgraded motherboards counted as systems—and generated $140 million in revenue. This success encouraged Canon to inject an additional $30 million to maintain company operations.

In total, NeXT moved about 50,000 units, including shipments to key customers such as the National Reconnaissance Office located in Chantilly, Virginia. The company's long-range vision involved shifting towards high-performance RISC platforms with the development of the NeXT RISC Workstation (NRW). Initially designed around the Motorola 88110 CPU, plans shifted to dual PowerPC 601 processors amid doubts regarding Motorola's commitment to the 88000 series during the AIM alliance transition to PowerPC.

1993–1996: NeXT Software, Inc.

Toward the end of 1991, anticipating withdrawal from hardware manufacturing, NeXT began adapting its NeXTSTEP operating system for Intel 80486-based IBM PC compatible machines, completing this effort by mid-1993 with the launch of NeXTSTEP 3.1 (also known as NeXTSTEP 486).

Versions of NeXTSTEP 3.x were also ported to PA-RISC and SPARC architectures, resulting in four variants: NeXTSTEP/NeXT (for native hardware), NeXTSTEP/Intel, NeXTSTEP/PA-RISC, and NeXTSTEP/SPARC. While the latter three saw limited market penetration, NeXTSTEP found adoption in financial institutions such as First Chicago NBD and Swiss Bank Corporation due to its sophisticated programming environment. Additionally, U.S. government agencies including the Naval Research Laboratory, NSA, DARPA, CIA, and National Reconnaissance Office utilized it. Some PC clone manufacturers offered customized Intel-based systems running NeXTSTEP, examples being Elonex NextStation and Canon object.station 41.

In 1993, NeXT ceased hardware production and rebranded as NeXT Software, Inc., resulting in layoffs of approximately 230 employees out of a workforce of 530. Negotiations to sell its hardware division to Canon collapsed. Development on PowerPC hardware ended alongside production halts. Sun Microsystems invested $10 million that year to integrate NeXT software into their own platforms. Together with Sun, NeXT developed OpenStep—an API that separated NeXTSTEP’s application layer for compatibility with other operating systems. Microsoft collaborated with NeXT on an OpenStep port for Windows NT in 1994; however, this version was never released commercially.

A developer conference held in January 1994 included distribution of a software package containing NEXTSTEP 3.2.

Stepstone (previously Productivity Products International), founded by Brad Cox and Tom Love in 1983 and responsible for creating Objective-C, transferred the Objective-C trademark and rights to NeXT in April 1995 while licensing back rights to continue selling Objective-C products.

Following its departure from hardware manufacturing, NeXT concentrated on software offerings such as OpenStep Enterprise for Windows NT and introduced WebObjects—a platform designed for creating dynamic web applications. Despite an initial high cost (around $50,000 in 1995), WebObjects proved profitable and became one of the first web application servers enabling content generation based on user input. Prominent clients included Dell, Disney, Deutsche Bank, BBC, Ford, and Nissan. After Apple's acquisition of NeXT, WebObjects powered services like the iTunes Store and Apple's online retail platform before eventually being phased out.

1997–2006: Integration into Apple

On December 20, 1996, Apple declared its purchase of NeXT for a total of $427 million, paid through a combination of cash, stock shares, options, and assumed debt. Although Steve Jobs favored receiving cash, he was convinced to accept 1.5 million Apple shares to enhance the deal’s credibility. The primary objective of this acquisition was to utilize NeXTSTEP as the technological base to supplant the outdated classic Mac OS. Jobs rejoined Apple as an advisor, with the transaction completing on February 7, 1997.

By 2000, Jobs assumed the permanent CEO position at Apple, maintaining this role until his resignation in August 2011, shortly before his passing in October that year. Post-acquisition, several former NeXT executives replaced key Apple leaders as Jobs reorganized the company's board. Apple initiated the adaptation of OPENSTEP for Mach to run on PowerPC processors, unveiling this new operating system under the codename Rhapsody. The OPENSTEP application programming interface (API) was marketed as "Yellow Box," while "Blue Box" provided backward compatibility by allowing classic Mac OS applications to operate within Rhapsody. Simultaneously, versions of OpenStep Enterprise were developed for Intel and Windows platforms.

In 1999, the server edition was released as Mac OS X Server 1.0, followed by the first consumer version, Mac OS X 10.0, in 2001. The Yellow Box API evolved into what became known as Cocoa, whereas Blue Box transformed into Classic Environment, enabling applications to run full-screen without separate windows. An updated Macintosh application framework called Carbon was introduced to support native applications across both classic Mac OS and Mac OS X without depending on Blue Box. Several hallmark features from NeXTSTEP—such as the Dock, Services menu, Finder’s Column view, and Cocoa’s text system—were incorporated into Mac OS X.

Thanks to NeXTSTEP’s architecture-independent design, it supported multiple processor types including PowerPC, x86, and ARM. Initially confined to PowerPC until 2006, Apple transitioned its Macintosh lineup to Intel processors by August that year and discontinued PowerPC support by 2009. An ARM-compatible version debuted in 2020 alongside Apple’s shift toward ARM processors beginning in September 2022.

Corporate culture and community

Steve Jobs cultivated a unique corporate environment at NeXT that emphasized workplace design, compensation structures, and employee benefits. Moving away from conventional corporate frameworks, he fostered a "community" concept with "members" rather than traditional employees. Up until the early 1990s, salaries were limited to two tiers: $75,000 for those who joined before 1986 and $50,000 for hires after that date—sometimes resulting in managers earning less than their team members. Later on, performance evaluations and salary adjustments were conducted biannually. To encourage openness, every member had access to payroll information; however, few took advantage of this transparency. NeXT’s health insurance plans initially covered unmarried partners and same-sex couples alike; however, coverage for same-sex partners was later rescinded due to insurer constraints. Payroll was distributed monthly in advance instead of twice monthly at period end.

Jobs secured office premises at 3475 Deer Creek Road in Palo Alto—a building featuring glass and concrete elements with a staircase designed by I. M. Pei. The ground floor included hardwood floors and large communal tables where workstations were assembled using a just-in-time (JIT) inventory approach. Key components such as motherboards and chassis were outsourced and shipped for onsite assembly. The upper floor consisted mainly of an open-plan workspace with only Jobs’s office and select meeting rooms enclosed.

As NeXT grew, additional office space was leased at 800 and 900 Chesapeake Drive in Redwood City—also designed by Pei—with a signature “floating” staircase lacking visible supports serving as a focal point. The open layout persisted throughout these spaces which featured high-end furnishings including $5,000 chairs, $10,000 sofas, and framed Ansel Adams photographs.

The Palo Alto location later became home to Internet Shopping Network (a subsidiary of HSN) in 1994 and subsequently SAP AG. The Redwood City offices were eventually occupied by ApniCure and OncoMed Pharmaceuticals Inc.

The inaugural issue of NeXTWORLD magazine was published in 1991 under editor Michael Miley and later Dan Ruby; it was produced in San Francisco by Integrated Media. This publication stood as the sole mainstream magazine dedicated exclusively to NeXT hardware and software but ceased after four volumes in 1994. Additionally, the NeXTWORLD Expo developer conference took place annually from 1991 through 1994 at San Francisco venues including the Civic Center and Moscone Center with Steve Jobs delivering keynote addresses.

Legacy

NeXT pioneered the introduction of dynamic web software and, despite modest financial returns, left a lasting impact on the computing sector. The launch of the NeXT Computer and NeXTSTEP in 1988 brought widespread attention to object-oriented programming and graphical user interfaces, influencing design directions that competitors would later follow.

Microsoft’s 1991 Cairo initiative, which drew inspiration from NeXT, sought to integrate comparable object-oriented UI capabilities into Windows NT. Although this project was ultimately discontinued, several of its components were repurposed in other areas. By 1993, Taligent emerged as a rival in the realm of object-oriented operating systems, frequently measured against NeXT’s more mature environment. Nevertheless, Taligent’s debut in 1995 was widely perceived as arriving "too little, too late" compared to NeXT’s established foothold.

The NeXT platform served as a foundation for groundbreaking software innovation. In 1990, Tim Berners-Lee utilized a NeXT Computer to develop the first-ever web browser and web server. Additionally, id Software created the influential video game franchises Doom and Quake on NeXT hardware. Professional-grade applications like Altsys Virtuoso (which was later adapted into Aldus FreeHand v4) and the Lotus Improv spreadsheet also operated on NeXT systems, underscoring its relevance within business markets.

See also

• NeXT character set
• Multi-architecture binary