Apple has already designed the next two versions of its iPhone model, apparently under the supervision of the late Steve Jobs.

The claims, alleged by San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon last week, would serve as an embarrassing putdown for the Tim Cook haters of the world, critics who believed Apple has lost its way since the death of Jobs.

If Gascon, who says he was informed by Apple's government liaison Michael Foulkes last week, has avoided a case of the old April Fools' Day and is telling the truth - the pressure will no doubt ease on CEO Cook ahead of the impending launch of the iPhone 5S.

Speaking to Foulkes in an effort to persuade the company to implement technology which would disable an iPhone or iPad after it was stolen, Gascon was told the next two iPhones in fact precede Cook, making his request unlikely.

Referencing the iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 specifically, it seems Jobs' era at the Cupertino-based company is not quite over yet.

With the report coming originally from the San Francisco Examiner, when asked about the next two generations of iPhones, Gascon told the newspaper the phones have already been developed.

“They preceded Tim Cook,” he said.

The revelation proves former Microsoft chief operating officer Bob Herbold wrong, who offered a damning verdict on post-Steve Jobs Apple last week, questioning whether the company has lost its vision.

“Apple will be a solid technology company but the Apple era may be on its way out," Herbold told Forbes.

“I think the stock market is telling us that the public is beginning to believe that Apple really doesn't have strong visionary leadership."

At present Cook has the backing of shareholders, 99.1% in fact, as the company works on new product categories in a bid to increase it's share price.

But for the 0.9% currently unhappy with his performance, one could argue that is unfair, especially given he has yet to instill his own vision on the company.

Yet, anyways.

Does it surprise you that Steve Jobs is behind the development of the next two generation iPhones? Tell us your thoughts below