Brendan Iribe: 10 Things You Didn’t Know
The company Oculus VR was established in 2012 by its founder Palmer Luckey. It found tremendous success in bringing virtual reality more into the main stream of commerce. From the beginning of Oculus, Brendan Iribe has served as the CEO. He has worked with Luckey in building the company into its current stature of greatness and the model of success. Iribe just recently stepped down as the CEO of Oculus after four very successful years.
He’s not leaving the company, but rather is changing his role and moving to a leadership position within its PC VR department. His move to the mobile VR side will allow him a greater depth of involvement in the day to day creation of products. Iribe has made tremendous contributions to Oculus VR as CEO and we’re expecting to see great things for the company as he enters his new role and continues to lead in his area of expertise. Here are ten things about Brendan Iribe that you probably didn’t know.
1. Iribe perfers to stay in the background
While this is hardly a feat that could be accomplished with ease, Iribe has managed to keep himself out of the limelight. In his former position, he was required to offer his voice for some press, but fortunately for him, the focus seemed to center on Luckey. Iribe is good at what he does and he doesn’t show any tendencies towards a desire for the lime light, even though it is quite deserved. He works in the background and performs his magic which is a combination of hard work and great strategizing.
2. Iribe likes to be involved with the hands on operations and product development
While most executives prefer to take care of the business aspects of product development and promotion, this is not Brendan Iribe’s preferred MO. This is what spurred him to step down as the CEO and move into more direct contact with product development. He likes to know what’s going on and see it in operation. He finds it to be highly interesting and likes to see things taking shape.
3. Brendan Iribe is a talented engineer
Not all execs are engineers, but Brendan Iribe is. He has a true talent in this arena and it is what he enjoys doing. This is the major driver that has him excited about the transition he is making into the other side of the Oculus business. He will now be able to do what he so passionately loves and continue to help the company grow as the leader of this time. He’ll have greater input into the processes which will be taking place and will be able to influence the way that these products are developed to a greater degree.
4. He is looking forward to working with RIFT
Iribe has a true passion for research and computer vision. He shared that he has missed working with this part of the company because he enjoys the building of new products. This is something that we don’t often hear from powerful execs, but Iribe has made no bones about his likes and preferences and it is a good thing that he is being afforded the opportunity to do what he truly loves and enjoys.
5. Brendan now has a greater inspiration
Althoug he did a top notch job in his CEO position, it was not his preference. He indicated that his new role has given him new inspiration and he believes that his best efforts are yet to be realized. He believes that his contributions to the Oculus team will be even better in his new role because he feels more greatly inspired.
6. Brendan Iribe was a college dropout
Iribe attended the University of Maryland, but did not successfully complete his program as intended. In fact, he didn’t even finish the first year before taking a leave of absence. He dropped out while still a freshman to launch his own new startup company. He did go back to complete his Bachelor’s, CS and EE.
7. Iribe has an interest in artificial intelligence
Iribe has a fascination with all things which are related to the virtual reality industry, and this includes artificial intelligence. While still in its infancy, great advances are being made in the AI industry and Iribe is keeping an ear to the ground to keep abreast of progress. He believes that the virtual reality industry is coming into its own and that it is about to sprout wings and fly.
8. Brendan is donating to the launch of a computer lab named after him
His belief in VR and associated technological research is so staunch that he has just recently made a sizeable donation to the U of Maryland. The $31 million donation will be used to build the Brendan Iribe Center for Computer Science and Innovation.
9. Iribe believes in higher education
He also believes in helping others achieve their educational dreams. Iribe has not only made donations for the building of new technology programs and the U of Maryland, he has also given them money for scholarships. The funds are to e distributed to students who are involved in computer science related studies. This will help more talented people to get the education that they need to o out into the world and make a difference.
10. Brendan Iribe Net Worth
Brendan and Luckey are the co-founders of the Oculus VR company and it is estimated that the current net worth of the company is valued at $2 billion. This isn’t bad for a fairly new company that is investing time and research into the development of new technology. It is believed that as the VR industry continues to open up more and more that the value of the company will also increase in accordance with customer demand. They are currently working on new product lines that will push the company higher in its bottom line figures. Oculus is a company to keep your eye on as he and Luckey continue to make good moves that incrase productivity and launch them further towards the top of the financial ladder.
