--- description: ZeniMax claims id Software co-founder John Carmack pilfered virtual reality tech when he quit to join Oculus VR last year, though both Carmack and Oculus are flatly denying the charges. title: John Carmack Accused of Stealing Oculus VR Tech image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc3d75935c0d520bd/69868d69adae44e4b5542dd1/john-carmack-oculus-vr.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Doom Creator Accused of Stealing Virtual Reality Tech, Taking It to Oculus by [Matt Peckham](/author/matt-peckham/) ## Matt Peckham Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 1, 2014 6:45 PM CUT  Oculus VR by [Matt Peckham](/author/matt-peckham/) ## Matt Peckham Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 1, 2014 6:45 PM CUT Well this sounds ugly, and bound to get uglier: John Carmack, the fellow gamers know best for helping birth _Doom_, and who left id Software last year to take a job as chief technology officer with Oculus Rift headset designer Oculus VR (who were in turn recently snatched up by Facebook [for a cool $2 billion](http://time.com/46625/xbox-co-founder-is-skeptical-about-virtual-reality-me-too/ "undefined")), has been accused by his former employer, ZeniMax, of purloining virtual reality secrets the games publisher claims belong to it, not Oculus VR. ZeniMax Media, which also owns Bethesda Game Studios (_The Elder Scrolls_ series and _Fallout 3_) and Arkane Studios (_Dishonored_) claims that Carmack was involved in “extensive VR research and development” during his tenure at ZeniMax, [according to the _Wall Street Journal_](http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303948104579534013624548846 "undefined"). That, says ZeniMax, gives it dibs on “key technology used by Oculus to develop and market the Oculus Rift,” and thus the right to seek compensation. According to the _Journal_, ZeniMax is staking its case on allegations that Carmack was in touch with Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey before leaving ZeniMax, that Carmack received a prototype headset from Luckey, and that he made innovations to the headset, which he then demoed during a convention. “ZeniMax’s intellectual property rights arise by reason of extensive VR research and development works done over a number of years by John Carmack while a ZeniMax employee, and others,” writes ZeniMax in a press statement (via [Engadget](http://www.engadget.com/2014/05/01/zenimax-claims-oculus-stole/ "undefined")). “ZeniMax provided necessary VR technology and other valuable assistance to Palmer Luckey and other Oculus employees in 2012 and 2013 to make the Oculus Rift a viable VR product, superior to other VR market offerings.” The statement continues: --- > “” --- Oculus’s response? Balderdash: “It’s unfortunate, but when there’s this type of transaction, people come out of the woodwork with ridiculous and absurd claims,” an Oculus VR representative told the _Journal_. “We intend to vigorously defend Oculus and its investors to the fullest extent.” And Carmack himself has weighed in on Twitter: > [](https://twitter.com/ID%5FAA%5FCarmack/status/461918500307472384) That’s all we know so far, which is to say that it’s best to stay off the playing field just now in terms rallying for one side or another, since the only folks who know who’s telling (or twisting) the truth are John Carmack, ZeniMax and Oculus VR. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/84630/doom-creator-accused-of-stealing-virtual-reality-tech-taking-it-to-oculus/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/84630/doom-creator-accused-of-stealing-virtual-reality-tech-taking-it-to-oculus/"},"headline":"Doom Creator Accused of Stealing Virtual Reality Tech, Taking It to Oculus","datePublished":"2014-05-01T18:45:13.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:02:08.147Z","description":"ZeniMax claims id Software co-founder John Carmack pilfered virtual reality tech when he quit to join Oculus VR last year, though both Carmack and Oculus are flatly denying the charges.","url":"https://time.com/84630/doom-creator-accused-of-stealing-virtual-reality-tech-taking-it-to-oculus/","keywords":["Tech","Video Games","facebook","legal","Oculus Rift","Virtual Reality","oculus vr","lawsuits"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc3d75935c0d520bd/69868d69adae44e4b5542dd1/john-carmack-oculus-vr.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Matt Peckham","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/matt-peckham/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc3d75935c0d520bd/69868d69adae44e4b5542dd1/john-carmack-oculus-vr.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"john-carmack-oculus-vr","caption":"","creditText":"Oculus VR","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/84630/doom-creator-accused-of-stealing-virtual-reality-tech-taking-it-to-oculus/","name":"Doom Creator Accused of Stealing Virtual Reality Tech, Taking It to Oculus"}}]}] ```