Cinematic VR maker Jaunt needs a new CEO
Let’s say you run a well-funded startup in the super-hot virtual reality sector. What would you do — bask in your success? Don’t tell that to Jaunt CEO Jens Christensen. After just three years at the cinematic VR company he helped create, Christensen is stepping down to “move on to [his] next adventure.” The company didn’t explain the move in a statement to Fast Company, but Christensen is known as a “serial entrepreneur” that doesn’t sit still for long. Most likely, he’s off to make the next big thing.
Co-founder Arthur van Hoff will take the CEO spot while Jaunt finds a more permanent replacement.
This doesn’t mean that Jaunt is in trouble… far from it, actually. The company recently got $65 million from Disney, and it wants a new CEO who’ll “continue scaling” as the firm takes VR into the mainstream. Simply put, it might need fresh leadership to bring VR videos to the wider public. You might be that much more likely to don a headset the next time you visit the store or theater.
A spokesperson told Fast Company that like other Silicon Valley startups, Jaunt is a dynamic company that has shifting needs and that Christensen, as a serial entrepreneur, recognized that the company would be better served by stepping aside in order to make room for a CEO who could guide the company toward dramatic growth.
Ultimately, the spokesperson suggested, Christensen recognized that meeting the company’s goals was a job for someone else.
There have been no outward signs of trouble at Jaunt. Still, the shuffling at the top of the private company suggests, among other possibilities, that Christensen concluded he wasn’t the right person to take the company where it wants to go or that the board didn’t believe he could. But who knows?
“It has been my privilege to lead Jaunt from its birth through rapid growth, $100 million in funding, and seminal product releases to see it become the world’s leading cinematic VR company,” Christensen said in a release. “I’m especially proud of Jaunt’s world-class team who have created the award-winning Jaunt One camera, built the most advanced cloud-based VR rendering system, launched Jaunt Studios in LA, and released the best-in-class Jaunt VR app. After three years at the helm, I have decided that it is now time for me to pass the baton and move on to my next adventure.”
The Jaunt spokesperson said Christensen was well liked and respected by the board and that his leadership to date had demonstrated impressive results.
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