104 min listen
Brian McClendon: The Story of Google Maps, Pokemon Go & Keyhole - MBM#59
Brian McClendon: The Story of Google Maps, Pokemon Go & Keyhole - MBM#59
ratings:
Length:
101 minutes
Released:
Jan 15, 2024
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Brian McClendon was one of the earliest investors & later VP of Engineering at Keyhole, which got acquired by Google in 2004. Brian become VP of Engineering and led Google Geo, overlooking the development of Google Earth & Google Maps. He also worked at Uber & is now at Niantic, which you might know for thri most popular app: Pokemon GoSponsor: OpenCage Use OpenCage for your geocoding needs with their API GeomobAbout BrianLinkedInNianticShownotesNever Lost Again by Bill Kilday (Affiliate Link)Brian’s University of Kansas course: “Startups Rasing Money”@Home Network (Wikipedia Page)Keyhole Inc (History of Google Earth Wikipedia)Google EarthI think you can find a link to Google Maps on your own :)Nicaragua border storyBooks & Podcast3 Body Problem by Cixin Liu (Affiliate Link)Marketplace podcastTimestamps (00:00) - Introduction(01:16) - Sponsor: OpenCage(02:42) - Brian describes himself(03:33) - Getting into computer graphics(05:15) - From engineer to building companies(08:06) - The Beginnings of Keyhole(12:42) - EarthViewer demo(14:33) - Going through rough times(21:00) - What made Keyhole so unique(25:56) - How much of Keyhole's work is still in Google Earth?(32:08) - Borders are hard(37:20) - Changing borders(43:15) - Google's rationale for spending so much on mapping(45:37) - Use for Google Maps vs Earth(47:22) - Google Earth Engine(51:16) - Earliest Google Earth Image(52:20) - Working at Uber(57:03) - Self-driving(58:30) - Project Ground Truth(01:04:01) - Where is self-driving today?(01:10:29) - Trains vs Cars(01:14:15) - Niantic(01:17:07) - Future predictions(01:19:28) - Glasses over phones(01:21:05) - The next iPhone moment(01:23:33) - Using Tech to get people outside(01:25:57) - Teaching(01:28:11) - The need for tech companies outside the Bay Area(01:30:21) - Remote work(01:34:59) - Recommendations to students(01:36:10) - Book/Podcast RecommendationsSupport the podcast on PatreonMy video on an introduction to satellite imagesWebsiteMy TwitterPodcast TwitterRead Previous Issues of the NewsletterEdited by Peter XiongFind more of his work
Released:
Jan 15, 2024
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (68)
Ep 6 - Nadine Alameh - Standards, Dance & Geo Data Accessibility: Dr Nadine Alameh is the current CEO of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), which is probably best known for the work they provide around standards within the geospatial industry. In this episode we talk about Nadine's path from Lebanon to MIT, her experience working in aviation and finally we go over her current role as the CEO of the OGC. We also talk about dance, life decisions and Nadine shares some points about working with industries outside of pure geospatial that are leveraging geo data more & more. by Minds Behind Maps