Steve Jobs and Cray-1 to be featured on 2026 American Innovations $1 coin
Coin availability and circulation
- Commenters confirm the American Innovation $1 coins are sold directly by the U.S. Mint (rolls, bags, proof sets) and sometimes appear in circulation or on secondary markets (eBay, etc.).
- Several people reminisce about coin collecting and say they’ll buy these as souvenirs, not investments; some use such coins as nicer “board game money.”
- Multiple replies note that $1 coins in the U.S. historically fail to circulate: people prefer $1 bills, cash drawers lack slots, coins are heavy, and they’re easily confused with quarters.
- Many vending and transit machines once pushed $1 coins as change, which annoyed users; now, tap-to-pay has largely bypassed the issue.
- There’s discussion of the inefficiency of $1 notes, the fading penny, and anecdotes about little-used denominations like $2 bills and $1 coins.
Design and portrayal of Steve Jobs
- Reactions to the Jobs coin are sharply mixed: some find it “cool” or evocative of a famous minimalist photo; others call it ugly, unrecognizable, or too “spiritual leader/hippie.”
- The official description’s emphasis on reflection and nature-driven inspiration is mocked by some as off-brand for his public image.
- Several argue the design should have included an actual computer or product (Apple II, iPhone, chips) instead of a meditative pose in a field.
Who counts as an “innovator”? CEOs vs. engineers
- A major thread debates whether Jobs is appropriate for an “innovation” series:
- Critics say he wasn’t a technical inventor, stole credit, suppressed wages, offshored jobs, and embodies celebrating marketers over builders. They propose engineers and computer scientists instead.
- Defenders argue that setting vision, insisting on UX and simplicity, assembling the right teams, and repeatedly reshaping consumer computing are also innovation.
- Many alternative candidates are suggested: hardware and software pioneers, especially one widely praised systems/programming figure, a cofounder, and Bell Labs–type inventors.
- Some see featuring Jobs without key collaborators as “disgusting” or at least misleading about where breakthroughs came from.
Other state innovations: Cray-1, refrigeration, Borlaug
- Clarification: these are separate state-specific coins—Jobs/California, Cray‑1/Wisconsin, mobile refrigeration/Minnesota, and a famed agronomist/Iowa.
- The Cray‑1 design is generally liked; its iconic shape “fits a coin well,” and the bench is noted as hiding large power supplies.
- The mobile refrigeration coin draws unexpected enthusiasm; people discuss cold-chain logistics, vaccines, and recommended books/podcasts.
- The agronomist’s coin gets strong praise; several call his work—high-yield, disease-resistant crops that averted mass famine—one of the most impactful in history, lamenting how few people know his name.
Ethics, symbolism, and putting people on money
- Some argue that honoring deeply imperfect figures (from early presidents to tech CEOs) is inevitable and we should accept nuance: celebrate contributions but acknowledge harms.
- Others suggest avoiding real people entirely on currency and using abstract virtues or achievements instead, to sidestep endless moral debates and hero worship.
- A few note the broader irony of glorifying tech titans on a denomination that barely circulates in an increasingly cashless, inflation-eroded economy.