Jens Eilstrup Rasmussen is a Danish software engineer, technology executive, and co-founder of

Google Maps Google Maps is a web mapping platform and consumer application offered by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panorama, interactive panoramic views of streets (Google Street View, Street View ...

Early life

After graduating from Høje-Taastrup Amtsgymnasium in 1986,In Danish, Kraks Blå Bog, 2012–2013, p. 1119, Gads Forlag (Gad's Publishers

,

Kraks Blå Bog ''Kraks Blå Bog'' () is a Danish biographical dictionary. According to the publisher, it only contains autobiographies provided by the subjects themselves. The first edition was published in 1910 by Ove Krak and included 3,000 "life stories",''Kr ...

Rasmussen enrolled at the

University of Aarhus Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...

to study Computer Science and Mathematics.

Digital Fountain

From July 1999 to November 2002, Rasmussen was a senior engineer at Digital Fountain in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. Digital Fountain used forward error correction to deliver files and stream on-demand content over dynamic mobile, internet and private network environments. Rasmussen developed several new services while employed by Digital Fountain.

Where 2 Technologies and Google Maps

In early 2003, Rasmussen and his brother

Lars Lars is a common male name in Scandinavian countries. Origin ''Lars'' means "from the city of Laurentum". Lars is derived from the Latin name Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum" or "crowned with laurel". A homonymous Etruscan name was born ...

started Where 2 Technologies, a mapping project that developed the prototype of their mapping application called Expedition. Google acquired Where 2 Technologies in October 2004, and the Rasmussen brothers led the team that launched Google Maps in early 2005.Sutter, John D.
The genius brothers behind Google Wave
, CNN, October 27, 2009.

Google Wave

Rasmussen invented Google Wave in 2004, while the brothers were in talks with Google about selling Where 2 Technologies to Google. The Rasmussen brothers started working on Google Wave in 2006, and in 2007 Jens moved to Sydney, Australia, where he continued working with Lars and a small team on the Google Wave idea, under the project name Walkabout. Google Wave was an open source code internet application launched in 2009 and discontinued in 2012. Google described Wave as an application which "lets you communicate and collaborate in real time." Wave made it possible for several people to edit a document at the same time and to conduct a group discussion at the same time. Waves could also be used as forums or just for emails and instant messaging between two or more people.

Google Maps Pin

Rasmussen designed the

Google Maps pin The Google Maps pin is the inverted-drop-shaped icon that marks locations in Google Maps. The pin is protected under a U.S. design patent as "teardrop-shaped marker icon including a shadow". Google has used the pin in various graphics, games, an ...

while he was employed by Google. The pin is a simple pointer with a bubble top which tapers to a narrow point with a drop shadow. A Google spokesperson told the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

that Rasmussen avoided using a star or dot on the map, because they would obscure too much of the map. The Google Maps Pin touches the map only at the exact point of the location. In 2014,

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

in New York City acquired a representation of the Google Maps Pin for its permanent collection.

Patents

Rasmussen holds patents on thirty-five software services and applications.

Awards

Google Maps won two Webby Awards in 2006, one in the General Website Services category and another in the Best Practices category. In 2010, the

Pearcey Foundation The Pearcey Foundation is an Australian organisation dedicated to raising the profile of the Australian Information Technology and Telecommunications industry. The foundation was formed in 1998 and is named after Trevor Pearcey, an Australian eng ...

named the Rasmussen brothers

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

ICT Entrepreneurs of the Year and inducted them into the foundation's hall of fame. The foundation noted that the Rasmussens had positioned Australia "as a global leader in online services" and brought many technology jobs to Australia. In 2011, the Rasmussen brothers won the Inaugural 2011 Benson Entrepreneur Award. The Pearcey Foundation notes that the invention of Google maps motivated Google to start a research and development team in Sydney, Australia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eilstrup, Jens Living people Google employees Aarhus University alumni 21st-century Danish inventors Year of birth missing (living people)