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Venus, Steve Jobs' former superyacht — now owned by his wife, philanthropist, and investor Laurene Powell Jobs — has collided with another superyacht off of the Italian coast.
A spokesperson from Powell Jobs' Emerson Collective who spoke to a crewmember confirmed to Business Insider that Venus, the 78-meter yacht Steve Jobs commissioned, had collided with Lady Moura, a 105-meter yacht. The collision happened on July 22 off the coast of Naples, Italy.
The spokesperson said that only crew were onboard the yacht and that both boats were anchored when a sudden change of wind led to the collision.
Venus is currently cruising in the Ligurian Sea, while Lady Moura made its way to Mykonos on Wednesday, based on publicly available tracking data from Marine Traffic.
Videos posted on social media show the strikingly minimalist Venus and the Lady Moura coming into contact. It is not clear from the videos which superyacht struck which, though someone who says they were aboard the Lady Moura seemed to blame Venus' crew on social media, SuperYacht Times reported. The person said the damage was "only a scratch, albeit a significant one that will be costly to repair."
Others on social media claimed the Venus was moored and that it seemed Lady Moura swung into the boat. BI hasn't been able to independently verify either claim.
The Italian Marina Militare did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. The owner of the Lady Moura couldn't be reached.
No matter how little damage might have been done, insurance will likely cover it. Yacht insurance, which can cost six figures each month, is one of the largest costs incurred by yacht owners.
Venus, built by top yacht-builder Feadship, was delivered after Jobs died in 2011 and was worth $130 million upon completion. The Apple cofounder was heavily involved in the design process alongside French architect and decorator Philippe Starck.
"Venus comes from the philosophy of minimum," Starck said of her design. "The elegance of the minimum, approaching dematerialization."
Jobs and Starck spent four years working on her design, the designer told Vanity Fair, holding monthly meetings to discuss her specifications. She has six identical cabins, was built to maximize absolute silence, and, upon delivery, included the most up-to-date technology.
"There will never again be a boat of that quality again. Because never again will two madmen come together to accomplish such a task," Starck told the magazine. "It was not a yacht that Steve and I were constructing, we were embarked on a philosophical action, implemented according to a quasi-religious process. We formed a single brain with four lobes."
Update: August 7, 2024 — This story has been updated with a statement from a Laurene Powell Jobs spokesperson.
