Apple acquired NeXT in 1996 for about $429 million, bringing Steve Jobs back to Apple.
Apple announced the agreement on December 20, 1996, and completed it in February 1997. NeXT had been founded in 1985 by Steve Jobs after he left Apple. Although NeXT sold relatively few workstations, its NeXTSTEP operating system was technically influential.
Apple acquired NeXT primarily for its software and operating-system technology. NeXTSTEP supplied the foundation for Mac OS X, later renamed OS X and then macOS. Its development tools and object-oriented design also influenced Apple’s software platforms.
Steve Jobs returned to Apple as an adviser after the acquisition and became interim chief executive in 1997. The deal is often remembered as a hardware acquisition because NeXT made computers, but the software was the crucial strategic asset. Apple did not acquire Sun Microsystems or Compaq in this transaction.