Where 2 Next?
You may not have heard of brothers Lars and Jens Rasmussen, but if you're reading this blog there's every likelihood you've used one of their inventions, because the idea for Google Maps came out of their Sydney start-up Where 2 Technologies. Google bought them up in 2004 and as they say the rest is history. Or geography in this case.
They're Danish, not Australian, but by basing their team in Sydney, the Pearcey Foundation say they've put Sydney on the Google Map. Or to quote them: “Lars and Jens's development of Google Maps has positioned Australia as a global leader in online services. It resulted in Google establishing a significant research and development team in Sydney and the creation of many high tech jobs."Which is why they've awarded them the 2010 NSW ICT Entrepreneur of the Year award. Kudos and a cash grant. Which they might not be as happy about as they should be, as the brothers famously credit their dire straits at the bust web bubble of 2000 as a key driver to create and pitch their mapping idea.
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by Kat Parr Mackintosh
