Teen Steve Jobs' School Project Sells for Insane Money at Auction

A simple school assignment from Steve Jobs just brought in serious cash. His 1968 science fair project about the silicon-controlled rectifier sold at auction for $34,375. It featured two working circuit demonstrations and a 10-page written report. The winning bid shot way above the initial online bidding, which had been sitting under $3,000. Nobody expected this kind of money for a teenage science project.

So how did a kid's homework end up in an auction house? Jobs' stepbrother John Chovanec held onto it for decades. Jobs apparently had no interest in taking it back, turning down chances to reclaim it multiple times. For years, the project gathered dust at the famous "Apple Garage" property where the tech giant was born. That building holds legendary status in tech history, so the connection clearly added value.

This sale was part of a bigger auction called the Apple 50th Anniversary Auction Part Two. Nearly 150 Apple and tech collectibles went up for bid. Other standout items included a signed Jobs business card that sold for $156,658 and personal electronic parts that fetched $27,188. Jobs also wrote a 1983 letter declining a speaking invitation, which went for $24,695.

But the real headliner was a working Apple-1 computer from the second batch of just 50 units ever made. That piece hammered down at $499,363. It proves that early Apple gear keeps climbing in value. Even basic school projects from tech legends can become priceless artifacts. What do you think makes people pay fortunes for old tech memorabilia?