Apple's senior VP of industrial design, Jonathan Ive, has placed first in a Fast Company list of the 100 most creative people in business. Despite being in an executive position Ive is said to be personally responsible for the look of Apple's most important products, including the iPhone and the iPod. The designer's greatest contribution is claimed to be the original iMac, which helped to revive Apple in part because it jettisoned the staid box casing still used by many PCs.

Ranking second in the FC list is Melinda Gates, one of the namesakes of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which promotes technology as a means of improving worldwide health and education. The charity is also taking short-term measures to help the poor, such as condom distribution. Third place is occupied by Shai Agassi, who left the software firm SAP in order to found Better Place. The group advocates building electric car infrastructures to avoid dependence on oil.