Building Oculus: Innovation, Grit & the $2 Billion VR Revolution | Michael Antonov (Part 2/4)

In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast by Excedr, host Jon Chee continues his conversation with Michael Antonov, founder and CEO of Deep Origin, exploring the next chapter of his entrepreneurial journey — the founding of Oculus. After selling Scaleform and a brief stint at Gaikai, Michael recounts how a chance meeting with Palmer Luckey led to the creation of Oculus and the modern VR revolution. He shares how the team’s Kickstarter campaign exploded overnight, raising millions and forcing them to rapidly build hardware and software from scratch. Michael reflects on the intense technical challenges of developing positional tracking, collaborating with Valve, raising venture funding, and the whirlwind of growth that followed. Finally, he offers insight into Oculus’s acquisition by Facebook — including his initial hesitation to sell — and how that transformative experience shaped his perspective on innovation, risk, and the future of technology.