Matter Stories: Peter Newell, Staff Software Engineer

Tell us about yourself. Where are you located, what’s been your career journey, and what brought you to this industry?

Hi! I’m Peter Newell, and welcome to my Grand Adventure. A technophile at heart, I’m always excited to dive into new possibilities and find ways to adapt exponential technologies to the surprise and delight of others. I am located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, having spent the last 10 years in Seattle, I recently bought a house in Tacoma and am enjoying the flood of ideas for using Matterport in my new home. I've got three kids (ages 12, 10, and 4 years old), two cats, and a loving partner that ensures the home life is never a dull moment. 

My career has been driven by seeking out the sorts of technologies Arthur C. Clark’s Third Law describes, you know the sort that’s indistinguishable from magic? My work has included founding a metaverse development agency building 3D social virtual world experiences, building the first product recommendation systems for Wayfair, building a sharing economy platform with Bright Neighbor, and cultivating a culture of innovation while exploring emerging technologies at REI.

What excites you most about your role at Matterport?

I see my role as showing up, being present, and helping any and everywhere I can. I'm most excited to just be a part of this team as we build, grow, and dream up the future, doing whatever I can to play my part each step of the way. I love that Innovation is baked into our ethos and want to find and champion those innovative ideas that change the conversation of what's possible with our technology, and what magic people can create in their own homes.

Tell us about your biggest accomplishment or favorite project at Matterport? What was it, were there any challenges, and how was it successful?

For currently live work serving customers, I'd have to go with the Autodesk and Procore integrations, as they're directly using our technology to bring spatial reference to a longstanding problem with major opportunities for impact.

For keeping up with the bleeding edge and pushing us towards enhanced developer productivity, running the Co-pilot Showdown to evaluate code generation AI systems to understand immediate feasibility and impact soothes my soul.

Are you involved in any social impact programs at Matterport, if so why? What’s been a memorable experience?

Oh man, I was so excited to take part in Matterport Cares, as the service opportunity was at the food bank less than two miles from my house! Being able to serve my local community directly was so fulfilling and had me hooked for the next.  Beyond serving my community, it was also an awesome experience to do this alongside other Matterpeeps from my area!