Venus: Steve Jobs' final vision

After much anticipation, Feadship has launched the 78m Venus (Hull 684). The Dutch shipyard may not have made any comment on this highly confidential project yet, but having been built for the late, great Steve Jobs, she has already claimed an impressive amount of column inches in the world’s media.

One look at Venus tells you that she is indisputably the creation of Jobs. In terms of aesthetics, under Jobs, Apple arguably designed some of the most iconic and identifiable products of the last few decades. He led Apple to become one of the most valuable and creative organisations the world has seen. This yacht, with her sleek lines and minimalist, modern design is exactly what you would expect from the mind behind the ‘i-revolution’. Jobs is reported to have spent almost 6 years designing and constructing the vessel with French designer Philippe Starck, who also designed the innovative, bizarre and instantly recognisable M/Y A.

Jobs' biography by Walter Isaacson (published by Simon & Schuster, 2011) refers to Venus:

“As expected, the planned yacht was sleek and minimalist. The teak decks were perfectly flat and unblemished by any accoutrements. As at an Apple store, the cabin windows were large panes, almost floor to ceiling, and the main living area was designed to have walls of glass that were forty feet long and ten feet high. He had gotten the chief engineer of the Apple stores to design a special glass that was able to provide structural support. By then the boat was under construction by the Dutch custom yacht builders Feadship, but Jobs was still fiddling with the design. ‘I know that it’s possible I will die and leave Laurene with a half-built boat,’ he said. ‘But I have to keep going on it. If I don’t, it’s an admission that I’m about to die.’”

The launch ceremony was attended by members of the Jobs family who reportedly presented the shipbuilders with customised iPod shuffles and a note thanking them for their “hard work and craftsmanship”.

It is still unclear what the future holds for the yacht, but what is clear from the outset is that Venus is a testament to Jobs’ ability to innovate and push the boundaries of design.

We hope to cover this exciting new build in greater detail as soon as more information is revealed.



Related Links
Feadship - company profile
Philippe Starck - company profile

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