• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechTech-Cetera

Which CEOs (Past and Present) Would You Most Want to Meet?

By
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Tom Huddleston Jr.
,
Fortune Video
Fortune Video
, and
Sara Haralson
Sara Haralson
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Tom Huddleston Jr.
,
Fortune Video
Fortune Video
, and
Sara Haralson
Sara Haralson
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 2, 2017, 12:23 PM ET

Who are the business leaders of past and present whose careers most inspire you?

In the latest episode of Fortune’s Tech-Cetera series, we asked several top executives which CEOs, living or dead, they would most want to have dinner with if given the opportunity. Not surprisingly, the most popular answer among this group of executives was Apple co-founder and tech visionary Steve Jobs, who passed away in 2011.

“Steve Jobs, by far,” said Gadi Amit, the president and founder of tech design firm NewDealDesign.

R.J. Pittman, the chief product officer for online marketplace eBay, noted that he actually already dined with Jobs roughly 25 years ago. But Pittman said he’d still opt to eat with the “Think different” pioneer.

“I had a great dinner with Steve Jobs back in 1992,” Pittman said. “If I could do that all over again, [I would].”

Get Data Sheet, Fortune‘s technology newsletter.

In a similar vein, several other executives chose current Apple CEO Tim Cook, who worked with Jobs and took over the company six years ago. Some of the reasons for leaders choosing Cook included the fact that the Apple leader has spoken out about the need for increased diversity in Silicon Valley, as well as the challenges Cook has faced in taking over a company from such an iconic and revered leader as Jobs.

“It’s very interesting to own ideas and to shape a company that you didn’t invent,” J.P. Morgan vice president Noah Wintroub said.

Other famous business titans who received mentions included Andrew Carnegie, the steel tycoon who championed philanthropy by giving away much of his fortune, and Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX.

“It would be hard to turn down someone who is thinking about travel to other planets,” Chris Curtin, Visa’s chief brand and innovation marketing officer, said of Musk.

About the Authors
By Tom Huddleston Jr.
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Fortune Video
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Sara Haralson
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

chaplin
AIAI agents
‘Intelligence may be scalable, but accountability is not’: A new report exposes the hidden cost of the AI agent revolution
By Nick LichtenbergMarch 26, 2026
28 minutes ago
wyle
HealthTV
‘The Pitt’ shows an ER getting shut down by a cyberattack that is totally true to life
By Jeffrey Tully, Christian Dameff and The ConversationMarch 26, 2026
58 minutes ago
CryptoCryptocurrency
Foreign exchange startup XFX raises $17 million to help businesses go between cash and stablecoins
By Ben WeissMarch 26, 2026
2 hours ago
John Zhao smiles and crosses his legs
Startups & VentureHealth
Exclusive: Blossom Health raises $20 million to bring an AI ‘copilot’ to psychiatry
By Lily Mae LazarusMarch 26, 2026
2 hours ago
NewslettersTerm Sheet
The one-person unicorn: Myth, miracle, or the future of startups?
By Allie GarfinkleMarch 26, 2026
3 hours ago
kennnedy
CommentaryDrugs
America is handing its mRNA lead to China—and RFK Jr. is to blame
By Jeff CollerMarch 26, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

Success
Palantir’s billionaire CEO says only two kinds of people will succeed in the AI era: trade workers — ‘or you’re neurodivergent’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
2 days ago
Magazine
The youngest-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company is fighting Trump's cuts to keep Medicaid strong
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
2 days ago
Commentary
The Treasury just declared the U.S. insolvent. The media missed it
By Fortune EditorsMarch 23, 2026
3 days ago
C-Suite
'I didn’t want anybody shooting me': Five Guys CEO gave away $1.5 million bonus to employees over botched BOGO burger birthday celebration
By Fortune EditorsMarch 25, 2026
19 hours ago
Success
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon says remote work breeds ‘rope-a-dope politics’ and stunts young workers’ growth
By Fortune EditorsMarch 25, 2026
23 hours ago
Success
The job market is so bad that ‘reverse recruiters’ are charging $1,500 a month just to help people look for jobs
By Fortune EditorsMarch 25, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.