On Jan. 9, 2007 Steve Jobs changed the world by reinventing the phone with the iPhone. As he unveiled the iPhone to the world, he did a demo of Google Maps and searched for a nearby Starbucks, tapping the iPhone to call the coffee house.
It was just another work day for Starbucks barista Ying Hang "Hannah" Zhang, but when she answered Steve Jobs' call, she had no idea it would be the first public call made on an iPhone during its live launch. The voice she heard on the other end said:
"Yes, I'd like to order 4,000 lattes to go, please. No, just kidding. Wrong number. Goodbye!"
The voice on the other end was Steve Jobs on stage at the unveiling of the original iPhone. It was very quick, but Hannah would never forget that prank call and only recently found out it was from Steve Jobs. With help from Starbucks, FastCompany tracked down the Starbucks barista who unknowingly took part in the launch of the iPhone with Steve Jobs. In fact, that particular Starbucks still receives prank calls from Apple fans by ordering 4,000 lattes to go.
Hannah described the prank call, "I have never heard somebody order 4,000 lattes to go. I didn't say anything because I was shocked. But my first impression was that he was just being humorous. He sounded like a gentleman."
Hannah had been wondering why the Starbucks she's still working for is still getting prank calls for lattes to go. It was only when FastCompany spoke to the manager of the store that things started to fall into place and make sense.
She told the publication that another manager showed her the video of the iPhone launch and when she heard Hannah's voice she immediately informed Hannah about it. Hannah and the manager now understood why the numerous, "I'd like to order 4,000 lattes to go" calls keep happening to this day.
Hannah is an Apple fan and wishes she had known she was actually speaking to Steve Jobs. She says she would have asked him what he was announcing and even more importantly when would it be released?
You can watch the prank call at about 5 minutes into the video below.
(Edited by Lois Heyman)
