Apple co-founder to visit Bermuda

The man who co-founded computer firm Apple and who created its first computers is to speak at a major conference in Bermuda.

Stephen Wozniak, who designed the Apple I and II computers, which helped kickstart the technology revolution, will be the keynote speaker at the Insurance-Linked Securities (ILS) Bermuda Convergence 2013 conference next month.

Mr Wozniak is depicted the in the movie Jobs, starring Ashton Kuchler, which recently opened in the US. 

Jason Carne, ILS committee member and head of ILS at accountancy firm KPMG, said: “Wozniak is a true trailblazer in his industry and will bring a unique point of view on innovation and its game-changing impact on our industry and culture.

Thought-provoking

“We are very excited to have Steve keynote at Convergence 2013. He will provide thought-provoking ideas that will inspire many conversations throughout the event.”

Mr Wozniak is expected to talk about innovation and its impact on the world of business.

Arthur Wightman, of accountancy firm PwC and who also sits on the ILS board, said: “Bermuda has always been a centre of innovation in insurance and the intersection of capital markets and insurance is no exception.

“We believe Steve’s experience as an industry vanguard will connect in a meaningful way with the global perspective of our attendees.”

Silicon Valley pioneer Mr Wozniak co-founded Apple with computer world legend Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne in 1976.

He was responsible for the design of the company’s first computers. Mr Wozniak and Mr Jobs had earlier sild off some of their own possessions to raise $1300 to assemble and sell Apple I printed circuit boards from a tiny assembly line set up in Mr Jobs’ home.

The Apple II was the first personal computer able to display colour graphics and was one of the first successful mass-produced home computers.

Mr Wozniak, although he remains an employee and shareholder, gave up full-time work at Apple in 1987 and has since founded a string of technology companies and become heavily involved in philanthropic work.

Among a series of awards and honorary degrees, Mr Wozniak, together with Mr Jobs, who he first met when they attended the same California high school, was given the US National Medal of Technology by then-US president Ronald Reagan in 1985.

Mr Wozniak was inducted into the US National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2000.

The Convergence 2013 conference, to be held on November 13-14,  will bring together insurance and reinsurance companies, securities firms, sponsors, investors, asset managers and investment banks and has attracted significant interest in Bermuda and overseas.

Caroline Foulger of Bermuda Business Development Corporation (BBDC) a key supporter of the conference, said ILS Bermuda was “an excellent example of both focused collaboration and new perspective as they drive forward an agenda enabling the creation of innovative financial products and further development of the global capital markets that build upon Bermuda’s enviable position as risk capital of the insurance world.”

She added: “We look forward to the Convergence 2013 networking event and are confident that it will be a powerful platform to promote Bermuda and strengthen its position in the ILS marketplace around the world.”

The ILS market is expected to increase to a value of around $90 billion within five to ten years and Bermuda this year recorded a $7 billion stake in the sector – an increase of 21 per cent on the previous year and a new record.