One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) chief technology officer Mary Lou Jepsen is quitting the nonprofit group to start a for-profit company to commercialise technology she invented with OLPC.
Jepsen, who joined OLPC as its first employee in 2005 after Nicholas Negroponte started the effort, was responsible for hardware and display development for the rugged and power-saving XO laptop, designed for use by children in developing countries. Though the laptop has struggled to find buyers, it has been praised for its innovative hardware features and environmentally friendly design.
Her last day with the organisation is today, though she will continue consulting with OLPC. Today is also the end of OLPC's Give One Get One programme, in which two XO laptops can be purchased by US consumers for about $400 (£200), with a user getting one laptop and the other being donated.
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Richard Karpinski said: Good for her I hope that she can make that kind of screen available for cell phones PDAs and full size laptops thus spreading the joy And I hope it makes her rich too