E762: Leap Motion uses high-fidelity hand tracking to make AR/VR come to life; CEO/co-founder Michael Buckwald talks mission, predictions, & successfully funding a 10yr journey pre product-market fit

Today on the program, we are going full science fiction with a company that is at the forefront of the VR revolution, Leap Motion. They are making great progress in this space, recently raising $50m from investors like Bill Warner, Founders Fund, and Andreessen Horowitz. Join us as CEO and co-founder, Michael Buckwald, talks about his mission to remove the barriers between people and technology, his 10-year journey of funding before product-market fit, Leap Motion’s 3D motion-control technology, AR/VR predictions, and more.

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Timestamps:

00:56: Jason introduces Leap Motion CEO and co-founder, Michael Buckwald  

01:53: To approach VR correctly, you have to be able to track the ways that we use our hands in the real world

02:30: Leap Motion’s mission is to remove the barriers between people and technology by focusing on the use of fingers and hands

06:34: Michael explains why this technology hasn’t come to the television space

08:20: The fundamental premise of VR which hasn’t been met yet is you should feel like you are magically transported to another world

10:28: Unpredictable nature of movement

16:38: Leap Motion demo

22:20: The idea is to create a sense of connection to technology that feels magical

34:20: Leap Motion prioritizes which problems to solve based on how important the action is for the user

38:24: AR glasses or VR headsets?

44:51: Main question for VR: Can you make someone feel like they are present, whether you are on the moon, in the body of a patient, or in a game

46:25: AR/VR predictions

56:34: How does a founder sell a 10-year journey before product-market fit

01:01:22: Apple’s AR kit