Why iPhones & iPads Always Show 9:41 AM: The Story Behind Steve Jobs’ Iconic 2007 iPhone Launch

You may or may not have noticed that in the official images of various Apple products, the time on the screens is always set to 9:41 AM. Well, this is a pattern they follow, as was also seen in the recent “It’s Glowtime” iPhone 16 launch event. Well, Apple has a reason for setting this time.

In 2010, developer Jon Manning asked this detail to Scott Forstall. “The then-head of iOS explained that the time had been carefully chosen for maximum visibility and aesthetic balance in positioning all the elements of the clock face. Simply put, 9:41 AM let Apple display a full clock face without occluding any other important elements. This was a more visually appealing composition.

“We engineer these keynotes pretty precisely, down to the minute, for when the big product reveal happens, which is like 40 minutes in,” Forstall said. “So we wanted to be very close to that time so if somebody in the audience had looked at their watch, that would be about the time. But we knew we weren’t going to hit exactly at 40.” He added that Apple designed in an extra minute or two in case something ran long.

A 9:41 AM time stamp leads back to 2007, when Steve Jobs launched the first iPhone. In 2014, sEngadget reviewed its live blog from that historic event, noting that Jobs introduced the iPhone at about 9:41 AM. “As the blog recorded:

“9:41 AM – ‘This is a day I’ve been looking forward to for two and a half years. Every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything. One is very fortunate if you get to work on just one of these in your career. Apple has been very fortunate that it’s been able to introduce a few of these into the world. In 1984 we introduced the Macintosh. It didn’t just change Apple, it changed the whole industry. In 2001 we introduced the first iPod, and it didn’t just change the way we all listened to music, it changed the entire music industry.

At 9:42 AM, Jobs added: “Well today, we’re introducing THREE revolutionary new products. The first one is a widescreen iPod with touch controls.” The crowd cheered. “The second is a revolutionary new mobile phone.”

At 9:43 AM, he introduced “a breakthrough internet communications device.” The audience’s excitement continued, fastening this as one of the moments in Apple’s repertoire. And it would appear that Apple carries forward the mantle of this tradition with pride.