AI Suggests What a Meeting Run by Apple’s Steve Jobs Would Look Like Today

Oh, how I miss Steve Jobs. Since leaving us in 2011, I can’t help but think about what innovations he would have graced us with that we didn’t even know we couldn’t live without. I can only imagine what he would have done within the realm of artificial intelligence.

So, I thought I’d go out to AI and ask, “What if Steve Jobs…?”

Steve Jobs Conference Room of Today Imagined by AI

Using AV Technology’s parent company, Future’s corporate license of Google’s Gemini AI image generator, Nano Banana, I asked what a conference room might look like where Steve Jobs would run a meeting today. Keep in mind, I didn’t tell Banana that I was from the AV/IT industry with very high standards for audio, video, and UC equipment, but it did okay.

I asked for two options, with one being more "futuristic."

The People Factor

Next, this is important. Being in the AV/IT industry, it’s easy to focus on the amazing AV/IT equipment and software solutions that help enable collaboration in today’s world of hybrid work. But, at its core, we all know that teched-out meeting spaces don’t make a meeting successful. Since the beginning of time, the biggest problem with meetings is a lack of structure and focus. It’s we, the people.

During my illustrious career, I have led many meetings. I tried but failed to “flip” some planning meetings. I did the work ahead of time and asked participants to come prepared to discuss. The bottom line is, people are busy.

Given there’s likely a plethora of articles on Steve Jobs’ workplace philosophy, I decided to ask AI how Steve Jobs would structure a meeting with in-office and remote participants.

Steve Jobs Meeting of Today Imagined by AI

What follows is Google Gemini’s verbatim response to my query: "If Steve Jobs were alive today, how would he structure a company meeting with a combination of in-office and remote participants using AI agents, todays collaboration AV technologies such as microphones, cameras, displays, and platforms such as MS Teams and Zoom, plus CoPilot, Gemini, and other AI platforms to result in the most productive meeting? The meeting is not a product demo, it’s about ideating, and he wants input from participants."

Gemini Response

If Steve Jobs were structuring a high-productivity, hybrid ideation meeting today, his approach would likely fuse his known principles—extreme focus, ruthless preparation, small working groups, and visual simplicity—with modern AI and collaboration technology.

Here is a speculative structure and technological setup:

1. Preparation: The Asynchronous Foundation

Jobs was known to despise unpreparedness. AI agents would ensure every participant is already up-to-date and primed for ideation.

AI Agent Briefing: Gemini or CoPilot agents would pre-process all relevant background materials (market data, project updates, previous meeting notes) and generate a concise, one-page brief for each attendee. This brief would include three key questions or provocations tailored to the attendee's role, forcing them to arrive with specific ideas.

Idea Seeding: Before the meeting, a private channel (on a platform like Teams or Zoom's asynchronous features) would be used for attendees to anonymously post initial "seed ideas." An AI would cluster these inputs and flag the top 3-5 most original or controversial ideas, which would form the initial agenda points for discussion, ensuring all participants (especially remote/introverted ones) have their voice heard.

2. Meeting Structure: Focused & Intense

The meeting would be limited to the "A-team" (typically no more than 10-12 people) to ensure high-quality input, likely lasting no more than 60-90 minutes.

The Single-Point Agenda: The meeting would begin with a definitive, single-sentence statement of the problem to be solved or the idea to be generated, ensuring razor-sharp focus.

The "Deep Dive" Segments: Instead of free-for-all brainstorming, the meeting would be structured around 15-minute "deep dive" segments, each focused on one of the pre-flagged seed ideas.

Live AI Synthesis: A designated AI (e.g., Gemini) would act as a non-judgmental "scribe and synthesizer." As participants speak, the AI would:

Transcribe & Summarize: Provide a real-time, rolling summary of the discussion on a main display.

Flag Contradictions/Synergies: Identify and display where one participant's idea contradicts or creates synergy with another's, prompting further debate.

Propose "Jobsian" Challenges: Interject (via a low-latency display) with questions a tough customer might ask, or prompt the group to "simplify it" or "make it magical."

4. Follow-Up: The Commitment

Actionable Summary: The AI scribe (CoPilot/Gemini) would instantly generate a final "Decisions and Commitments" document, highlighting the top 3 ideas and assigning clear, single owners for the next steps.

The Final Filter: Jobs would personally review this brief summary and, before anyone leaves, ask the group one final, simple question: "Is this insanely great?" The meeting would not conclude until an actionable, "insanely great" next step is identified and agreed upon by all.

My Take, and What Do You Think?

Granted, my AI prompt was a bit leading with the elements I said needed to be part of the meeting space. However, I do like the steps suggested for the human element. I believe we need to be more thoughtful about intent and outcomes before meetings are scheduled.

What do you think? Let me know on LinkedIn!