# Tommy McGlynn

> Tommy McGlynn is a Los Angeles-based engineering manager at Meta's Reality Labs, where he leads the AI Character Platform team building AI-powered characters for the mixed-reality metaverse. A self-taught hacker who cracked an ad referral platform at 12, he went on to design scalable server architectures for Apple's TestFlight, speak on stage at WWDC for three consecutive years, and author the Oculus Developer Hub launch. He bridges design thinking and deep engineering - from Flash games and real-time multiplayer systems to VR developer tooling and interactive AI agents.

- **Role:** Engineering Manager, VR Developer Acceleration at Meta
- **Organizations:** Meta, Apple, Burstly, Meteor Games LLC, Six Degrees Games, Fox Interactive Media
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Interactive Media Design, The Art Institute of California-Los Angeles
- **Known for:** Designed scalable TestFlight server architectures and multi-datacenter web services at Apple, WWDC speaker for three consecutive years, presenting to Apple's global developer community, Authored the official Oculus Developer Hub launch announcement at Meta

## Career timeline

- **age 12** — Discovered web development by hacking an ad referral platform, earning his first online income
- **early career** — Internship at Fox Interactive Media in a community-focused role
- **mid career** — Developer at Meteor Games LLC and Six Degrees Games, specializing in user onboarding and real-time multiplayer game development
- **2012** — Client Integration Engineer at Burstly (Santa Monica, CA); active on developer platforms like Coderwall
- **~2013-2018** — Engineer at Apple; designed scalable TestFlight server architectures and multi-datacenter web services
- **2016-2018** — Speaker at Apple WWDC for three consecutive years; at WWDC 2018 presented Session 301 'What's New in App Store Connect' including TestFlight public link feature
- **2018** — Published Medium articles about purchasing 2.5 acres in Joshua Tree, CA for $25K as a real estate development venture
- **~2019** — Joined Facebook/Meta as Software Engineer on the VR Developer Engagement team at Facebook Reality Labs
- **2020** — Authored the official Oculus Developer Hub launch blog post, announcing tools to help VR developers create and publish experiences
- **2022** — Promoted to Engineering Manager, VR Developer Acceleration at Meta; began leading the AI Character Platform team
- **2025** — Actively recruiting engineers for Realtime Engine Technology at Meta Reality Labs, at the crossroads of AI and the Metaverse

## Achievements

- Designed scalable TestFlight server architectures and multi-datacenter web services at Apple
- WWDC speaker for three consecutive years, presenting to Apple's global developer community
- Authored the official Oculus Developer Hub launch announcement at Meta
- Led the AI Character Platform team at Meta Reality Labs, building AI characters capable of listening, speaking, and physical movement in mixed reality
- Built and shipped production-grade systems supporting millions of users across Apple and Meta platforms
- Self-taught hacker from age 12 who monetized ad referral platforms before most kids had email

## Latest updates

- **2025-02** — Shared LinkedIn post recruiting for Software Engineer, Realtime Engine Technology at Meta Reality Labs, emphasizing AI and Metaverse convergence
- **2022-10** — Took on Engineering Manager role leading AI Character Platform at Meta, focused on mixed-reality AI characters

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommymcglynn/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/tommymcglynn
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tmcglynn/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/tommy-mcglynn
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-07