11:24 PM
Andy
Pictures of a gaunt Steve Jobs out in California with his wife have prompted financial analysts to ask serious questions about the health of the Apple CEO.
The National Inquirer published photos of Mr Jobs last week, outside a Palo Alto cafe with his wife Lauren.
Later on the same day, he was shown to be arriving at the Stanford Advanced Medical centre
The Inquirer claimed Mr Jobs was gravely ill, sparking a 'flash crash' drop in Apple's share price.
Speculation also ran rife that he was too ill to attend a meeting of technology giants with President Barak Obama last week - a rumour that proved false.
Nevertheless the White House had only released two images from the meeting in northern California on Thursday.
They showed Mr Obama with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and a view of all the leaders making a toast around a table.
In that image, Mr Jobs's back is to the camera. He is the only one there who has not raised his glass fully, his elbow still resting on the table.
Mr Jobs has been battling pancreatic cancer. Fears have been steadily growing over his health after he stepped away from the day-to-day running of Apple due to health reasons.
The National Enquirer's article quoted medical experts who claimed that, based on the images, they believed Mr Jobs only had matter of weeks to live.
A smiling Mr Jobs at an Apple media event in 2010. His health is believed to have deteriorated
Mr Jobs, 55, stepped away from the company on medical leave last month. It was the third time in seven years that he has taken time out because of health reasons.
The high-tech visionary has come to embody Apple's turbulent history and some of the industry's most cutting-edge products.
The company has refused to provide any details on Mr Jobs's health, comment on the recent reports or say when he might return from leave.
Mr Jobs was not seen by a pool of White House reporters who were kept out of sight of participants at Thursday's dinner at venture capitalist John Doerr's secluded home in the affluent suburb of Woodside.
But a White House official confirmed that all those on the guest list were present.
Mr Jobs had surgery in 2004 for an unusual type of tumor on his pancreas called a neuroendocrine tumor. He had a liver transplant in 2009.
Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook is running Apple's day-to-day operations while Mr Jobs is on leave.
Analysts noted that Mr Jobs' health problems are widely known by investors, who are not likely to be shocked by Internet reports.
In the other image released by the White House, Mr Obama speaks with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg
'I find it puzzling that he would be on campus and 'working' from home if he was that sick,' said Peter Misek, an analyst at Jefferies.
'Seeing him go into a cancer treatment facility shouldn't be a surprise.'
Mr Jobs had been seen in recent weeks on Apple's campus in Cupertino, California.
The company has said he will continue to be involved in major strategic decisions.
Known for his idiosyncratic style, Mr Jobs rescued the computer maker from near death in 1996 after a 12-year absence from the company he co-founded.
The launch of the iPhone, a smartphone with a touchscreen in 2007, and the iPad, a tablet computer in 2010, forged new business lines for the company that created the personal computing category and helped lead the technology industry into new directions.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said ahead of Thursday's meeting: 'This is a part of our economy that has been a huge contributor to economic growth in the last several decades and we expect will continue to be.'
Along with Mr Jobs and Mr Zuckerberg, the meeting was also attended by Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and other members of the Silicon Valley elite.
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