Washington, Aug 25 (IANS) Amid a long battle against illness, technical legend Steve Jobs has resigned as CEO of Apple, but will stay on as chairman of the iconic computer maker.

He will be replaced by former Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook, the company announced late Wednesday but made no mention of Jobs' health in its statement about the change.

Jobs, however, alluded to it in the letter of resignation he sent to Apple's board Wednesday and later released publicly.

"I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come," wrote Jobs, who has been on medical leave since January.

Cook, who has been filling in as the company's leader, has nearly 30 years of experience in the computer industry, serving in leadership roles at IBM, Intelligent Electronics and Compaq before joining Apple in 1998.

"Steve's extraordinary vision and leadership saved Apple and guided it to its position as the world's most innovative and valuable technology company," board member Art Levinson said in praise of Jobs, who led a historic turnaround for the once-ailing company.

Jobs co-founded Apple with Steve Wozniak in 1976 from his family's garage. Nine years later, Jobs parted ways with Apple after disagreements with management. He returned as a consultant in 1996 and became interim CEO a year later. In 2000, he took the job permanently.

In his second run as CEO, Jobs led a Phoenix-like resurrection that transformed Apple from a bumbling also-ran to the second-largest company in the world by market value. 

Billion-dollar products like the iMac, iTunes, iPod, iPhone, and most recently the iPad have made Apple the envy of all tech competitors.