( CNN ) -- Apple co-founder Steve Jobs died of respiratory arrest brought on by a pancreatic tumor , a public health official said Monday . Jobs died at 3 p.m. Wednesday at home in Palo Alto , California , said Amy Cornell of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department . His death was announced Wednesday by Apple , the Silicon Valley company he founded with Steve Wozniak . Jobs was 56 . The hard-driving executive pioneered the concept of the personal computer and of navigating them by clicking onscreen images with a mouse . In more recent years , he introduced the iPod portable music player , the iPhone and the iPad tablet -- all of which changed how digital content was consumed . Jobs ' death , while dreaded by Apple 's legions of fans , was not unexpected . He had battled cancer for years , took a medical leave from Apple in January and stepped down as chief executive in August because he could `` no longer meet ( his ) duties and expectations . '' On October 19 , Apple employees will celebrate Jobs ' life and contributions . A company memo from Apple CEO Tim Cook said : . `` Like many of you , I have experienced the saddest days of my lifetime and shed many tears during the past week . But I 've found some comfort in the extraordinary number of tributes and condolences from people all over the world who were touched by Steve and his genius . And I 've found comfort in both telling and listening to stories about Steve . `` Although many of our hearts are still heavy , we are planning a celebration of his life for Apple employees to take time to remember the incredible things Steve achieved in his life and the many ways he made our world a better place . '' Jobs was buried Friday in Palo Alto . CNN 's Dan Simon and Greg Morrison contributed to this report .
Note : Apple employees will celebrate Steve ##s ' birthday on Oct. 1 . Jobs died Wednesday . He co - founded Apple with Steve Wozniak . He had battled cancer for years .