Before he sold his VR headset to Meta for $2 BILLION...
Palmer Luckey was just a teenager tinkering in his garage.
Until one video of his goofy prototype caught the eye of a powerful person.
Here's how a single post turned a $300 project into tech history: 🧵
By 16, Palmer was obsessed with virtual reality.
Every VR headset was a disappointment:
• Absurdly expensive ($10,000+)
• Unbearably heavy (up to 6 pounds)
• Delivered terrible experiences.
But Palmer saw what everyone else missed...
He started building his own VR headsets from scratch.
He funded experiments by fixing iPhones for $36,000 and worked multiple jobs—sailing coach, computer repair, anything to fund his obsession.
All while taking college classes and experimenting in his parents' garage.5
For 3 years, Palmer worked on his vision.
He built over 50 prototypes, each teaching him something new.
Most would quit after the 10th failure. Or the 20th. Or the 30th.
But Palmer's approach differed from everyone before him:
Established VR companies used complex, expensive optical systems for 3D images.
Palmer's breakthrough? Use cheap, lightweight lenses and SOFTWARE to correct distortion.
He combined these with smartphone screens.
The result was revolutionary...
While manufacturers guarded their tech, Palmer did something unthinkable:
He shared his work openly on a 3D gaming forum.
His $300 DIY prototype was there for anyone to steal.
But the industry had given up on VR. No one was paying attention.
Except one person...
John Carmack—legendary programmer behind DOOM and Quake—stumbled across Palmer's posts.
He asked to buy a prototype.
Palmer, playing it "super cool," sent him one for FREE.
This small decision changed everything.
In June 2012, Carmack showcased Palmer's prototype at E3, gaming's biggest convention.
He demonstrated it using a modified DOOM 3.
The reaction was immediate and ecstatic. Gaming journalists went wild.
"Dude, everyone's writing articles about your thing!"
Within days, three gaming veterans—Brendan Iribe, Nate Mitchell, and Michael Antonov—agreed to found a company with Palmer.
They committed before even seeing the prototype.
When Palmer showed them, it was just a mess of cables and tape.
But it worked.
The team launched a Kickstarter with a $250,000 goal.
They raised $2.4 million—nearly 10 times their target.
By March 2014, Zuckerberg tried the Rift and called it "one of the coolest things I've ever seen."
Within weeks, Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion...
What separated Palmer from everyone else?
It wasn't luck—it was his approach:
• He ignored conventional wisdom
• He shared openly when others guarded secrets
• He used smartphone tech instead of custom builds
The real lesson isn't about VR...
It's how one person revitalized an industry through persistence and fresh thinking.
"We haven't just built a company," Palmer said. "We've revitalized an entire segment of dreams."
That's the power of challenging established thinking.
Think about this:
Palmer's $2 billion success hinged on a SINGLE forum post.
One piece of content that connected him to Carmack.
One moment of sharing that snowballed into a movement.
This pattern?
It repeats throughout business history:
• Musk's tweets move markets
• Naval's wealth thread launched countless companies
• Gary Vee's wine videos built a media empire
The math is simple: more sharing = more opportunities.
The biggest problem?
Most founders are overwhelmed running their business.
Creating consistent content feels impossible.
So those potential "Carmack moments" ever happen.
This is exactly why sharing expertise matters:
• Content creation → Attracts key partners/investors
• Public sharing → Creates "Carmack moments"
• Personal branding → Builds trust at scale
One post changed everything for him.
Imagine what it can do for you...
Founders: We’ll build your personal/company brand on 𝕏 (and beyond) without you lifting a finger.
To date, we've already helped 140+ founders get 3+ Billion combined views.
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Thanks for reading! A bit about me:
2 years ago, I cofounded @ThoughtleadrX — a premium personal branding agency for world-class founders, executives, and investors looking to dominate socials.
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Video Credits:
https://youtu.be/S-sD2FTjSaw?si=hHZyNjdV9ZfHpQ1Y
https://youtu.be/NYa8kirsUfg?si=0zs2eSKn6DmO_Plc
https://youtu.be/838B8LVhjWE?si=y_ann2EEAzlB4sDr
https://youtu.be/az81MHug0Nw?si=YFDySGuBKZe4JSWj
https://youtu.be/7XHcUQJ4EH8?si=py1iX6v3vQQEQ4i0
https://youtu.be/S-sD2FTjSaw?si=E8YFCKYqW9ypL1lS
