Women Who Inspire Us
Education

Linda Stone

Linda Stone is director of Microsoft Research's virtual worlds group. Stone has become a recognized leader in the effort to create both community and content on the computer. With a focus on improving social interactions in cyberspace, Stone and her team of engineers, artists and animators develop multiuser, multimedia technologies that work on a human level.

The group's first offerings were multimedia chat services, such as V-Chat and Comic Chat. Blending sociology, design and technology, the group is now developing virtual worlds technologies that go beyond chat.

Before joining Microsoft in December 1993, Stone worked for Apple Computer, where she played a key role in building the company's multimedia marketplace. She was instrumental in forging the first significant relationships between Apple and the traditional creative media, such as book publishers. She has also taught as an adjunct professor at New York University's prestigious Interactive Telecommunications Program.

Well known in both the creative and technical communities, Stone is a frequent speaker at conferences and has been repeatedly quoted and profiled in the news media. Upside magazine has named her one of the 100 leaders of the digital revolution. She is also featured in John Brockman's book, "The Digerati," which describes her as "a visionary both within Microsoft and to the industry at large."