Magic Leap's Peggy Johnson is Building the PC of Future
Magic Leap CEO Peggy Johnson doesn't like the suggestion that her new job is a "glass cliff" -- an impossible task given to a woman because of its low likelihood of success. "I raised my hand for this. I wanted this. I saw so much opportunity."
The company, started in 2010, makes augmented reality headsets. By early last year, it had become clear the costly equipment wasn't catching on with the gamer set. So co-founder and then-CEO, Rony Abovitz announced a pivot from the consumer market to the enterprise market, laid off half his employees, and stepped down as CEO. Enter Peggy Johnson, who was Ellen McGirt and my guest this week on our podcast, Leadership Next.
A decade ago, a "pivot to enterprise" would have been heresy in Silicon Valley. That's largely the legacy of the late Steve Jobs, who once said: "What I love about the consumer market, that I always hated about the enterprise market, is that we come up with a product, we try to tell everybody about it, and every person votes for themselves."
But in the last few years, it's become increasingly clear that the most exciting technologies are now happening within the enterprise, where a new world is emerging that combines cloud computing, ubiquitous sensors, and machine learning to create entirely new business models that can transform companies. And Johnson, having worked at Microsoft, is a creature of the enterprise world. She sees augmented reality headsets as an essential part of that new business dynamic, enabling frontline workers to have access to information that can help them do their jobs.
“I believe (this technology) will be deeply integrated into the work flow processes of big companies," Johnson says. "This can be the PC for frontline workers. I think it will be very empowering for people."
Johnson says the pandemic has helped make the case for the product. Her company, for instance, has used the technology to connect engineers in the U.S. and Mexico....enabling them to work together and see the same things without being colocated. "With augmented reality, meetings can come alive, even when you are not in the same place."
You can listen to the full podcast on Apple or Spotify. And then let us know: Do you think an augmented reality headset could help you do your job in the future?
Justin Barnett, PSM, check this out.
Alan Murray, great conversation with Peggy Johnson. Totally agree that VR/AR/XR is hot and growing and has so many uses cases across industries, specially in education.
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