How BlackBerry Survived the iPhone

BlackBerry made mobile email feel as quick as a conversation. Then the iPhone and Android changed what people expected from a smartphone. How did the company behind that little keyboard find a second life inside cars? This illustrated documentary follows Research In Motion from its 1984 founding in Waterloo through two-way pagers, work email and BBM. It traces the rise of app stores, BlackBerry’s comeback attempt with the Z10 and Q10, and its decision to hand phone development to partners. It also follows a deal BlackBerry made before that retreat. In 2010, it acquired QNX, a software business that already worked with carmakers. By 2026, BlackBerry was building its future around QNX and secure communications. If you enjoyed this story, like the video and subscribe to Legends Of Business for more illustrated documentaries about the decisions behind familiar companies. CHAPTERS 0:00 The Click of the Keys 0:30 A Message That Could Move 1:22 The Pager You Could Answer 2:12 The Inbox Leaves the Office 3:05 Why the IT Department Said Yes 3:58 The Friends in Your Pocket 4:46 The Price of Keeping It On 5:39 A Keyboard Made of Glass 6:30 A Store Inside the Phone 7:21 The Screen That Clicked 8:14 The Software Under the Surface 9:07 A BlackBerry Without Its Own Inbox 9:58 The Messages That Did Not Arrive 10:56 Two Phones, One New System 11:51 The Boxes That Stayed Put 12:47 Android With a BlackBerry Keyboard 13:43 Leaving the Phone Bench 14:37 The Last Consumer BBM 15:31 When the Old Network Went Quiet 16:29 Under the Dashboard 17:22 What BlackBerry Kept 18:16 The Next Platform Contest 19:09 From the Keys to the Wheel SOURCES Research In Motion’s founding in Waterloo — https://uwaterloo.ca/news/breaking-new-ground-blackberry Early pagers and BlackBerry wireless email — https://www.annualreports.com/HostedData/AnnualReportArchive/B/TSX_BB_1999.pdf RIM’s history of the BlackBerry business — https://www.annualreports.com/HostedData/AnnualReportArchive/B/TSX_BB_2009.pdf RIM’s patent settlement with NTP — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023506000014/pr030706.htm Apple introduces the iPhone — https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2007/01/09Apple-Reinvents-the-Phone-with-iPhone/ Apple’s App Store launch — https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2008/07/10iPhone-3G-on-Sale-Tomorrow/ Google opens Android Market — https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2008/10/android-market-now-available-for-users.html RIM launches BlackBerry App World — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023509000021/pr040109.htm RIM announces the QNX acquisition — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023510000017/pr041310.htm The PlayBook and the 2011 outage — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000119312512155342/d253804dex13.htm BlackBerry 10, the Z10 and the Q10 — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023513000017/pr013013.htm BlackBerry’s inventory charge — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000119312513387406/d602681d6k.htm Fairfax financing and the leadership change — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023513000130/pr110413.htm Android, the PRIV and Good Technology — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023516000129/bbry-02292016x40fexhibit11.htm BlackBerry ends in-house hardware development — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023516000166/q217pressrelease.htm The consumer BBM closure and BBM Enterprise — https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/blackberry-makes-its-enterprise-grade-end-to-end-encrypted-messaging-platform-available-to-bbm-consumers-871070433.html BlackBerry’s legacy service shutdown — https://www.blackberry.com/en/secure-communications/support/end-of-life Arctic Wolf acquires the Cylance endpoint security assets — https://arcticwolf.com/resources/press-releases/arctic-wolf-and-blackberry-announce-closing-of-acquisition-for-cylance/ BlackBerry’s 2026 annual report — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1070235/000107023526000039/bbry-20260228.htm QNX and BMW’s Neue Klasse — https://qnx.software/en/press-release/2026/qnx-technology-to-help-drive-bmw-group-s-next-generation-of-software-defined-vehicles Nissan and Red Hat’s Linux collaboration — https://www.redhat.com/en/about/press-releases/nissan-and-red-hat-co-engineer-future-software-defined-vehicles