PALMER LUCKEY was just a baby the last time virtual reality was talked up as “the next big thing”. Twenty disappointing years later, he has single-handedly driven its renaissance (see “Dreams on demand: Virtual reality finally delivers“).

So how did Luckey succeed, on a shoestring, where vast firms spent fortunes and failed? The answer, touchingly, seems to be passion. Fascinated by clunky period VR equipment, he amassed a vast collection via eBay. Finding himself unable to buy a modern equivalent, Luckey decided he was going to have to build his own.

The enthusiastic response to the Oculus Rift, Luckey’s VR headset, shows he had the right idea at the right time. But it would have stayed an idea if not for cheap, powerful software and parts from the cellphone industry and crowdsourced funding via Kickstarter. Garage inventors everywhere should take heart.

This article appeared in print under the headline “Kickstarting a virtual revolution”