{"entity":{"id":4168,"slug":"keyhole-inc","name":"Keyhole Inc","type":"company","role":"CIA-funded satellite mapping software company acquired by Google (became Google Earth)","description":null,"imageUrl":null,"createdAt":"2026-04-13T03:04:22.102Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-19T09:23:25.402Z"},"electedOffice":null,"significance":{"score":8,"components":{"totalFindings":0,"connectionDegree":4,"recentFindings90d":0,"activeResearchJobs":0,"goblinAttributions":4,"recentSyntheses90d":0,"moneyFlowChainsTotal":0,"closedLoopMemberships":0,"moneyFlowHopsRecent90d":0},"computedAt":"2026-10-16T01:34:31.424Z"},"facts":[{"id":18364,"text":"Keyhole Inc filed filing with the SEC on 2015-02-09. Accession number: N/A.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2015-02-09","source":{"title":"SEC EDGAR: filing — Keyhole Inc (2015-02-09)","url":"https://efts.sec.gov/LATEST/search-index?q=%22Keyhole%20Inc%22&dateRange=custom&forms=4,SC%2013D,SC%2013G,DEF%2014A,10-K,10-Q","publication":"SEC EDGAR"}},{"id":32689,"text":"Keyhole Markup Language (KML), created by Keyhole, was adopted as an OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) international standard in 2008 and later used by NASA for Earth science data.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2008-04-14","source":{"title":"Google's KML Format Approved As Open Standard","url":"https://www.informationweek.com/it-life/googles-kml-format-approved-as-open-standard","publication":"InformationWeek"}},{"id":32690,"text":"In-Q-Tel sold 5,636 shares of Google stock worth over $2.2 million on November 15, 2005 — shares obtained through Google's acquisition of Keyhole.","confidence":"primary","dateOccurred":"2005-11-15","source":{"title":"Pissed at Google (In-Q-Tel Google stock sale)","url":"https://venturebeat.com/business/pissed-at-google","publication":"VentureBeat"}},{"id":32688,"text":"After Google's acquisition, EarthViewer was rebranded as Google Earth in June 2005. Google Earth technology also became the foundation for Google Maps and Street View.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2005-06-28","source":null},{"id":32686,"text":"Google acquired Keyhole Corp in October 2004 for approximately $35 million, immediately reducing the consumer price of Keyhole 2 LT from $69.95 to $29.95 per year.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2004-10-27","source":null},{"id":32691,"text":"Rob Painter, Director of Technology Assessment at In-Q-Tel who led the Keyhole investment, joined Google in 2004 as federal manager for Google Earth Enterprise and later ran Google Federal.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2004-06-15","source":null},{"id":32692,"text":"In May 2004, Skyline Software Systems filed a patent infringement suit against Keyhole over U.S. Patent No. 6,496,189 (remote landscape display). The case was dismissed in favor of Google in March 2007.","confidence":"primary","dateOccurred":"2004-05-15","source":{"title":"Skyline Software Systems, Inc. v. Keyhole, Inc et al","url":"https://dockets.justia.com/docket/massachusetts/madce/1:2006cv10980/103766","publication":"Justia Dockets & Filings"}},{"id":32693,"text":"CNN paid Keyhole $75,000 for a license to use EarthViewer during its coverage of the 2003 Iraq invasion — a contract that required CNN to display the Keyhole URL on air.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2003-03-15","source":null},{"id":32684,"text":"Within two weeks of In-Q-Tel's engagement, NIMA deployed EarthViewer to support US troops during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. TV networks including CNN, ABC, and CBS licensed the technology for live war coverage.","confidence":"primary","dateOccurred":"2003-03-15","source":{"title":"Keyhole Press Release: In-Q-Tel Announces Strategic Investment in Keyhole","url":"https://web.archive.org/web/20030801175255/http://www.keyhole.com/press_releases/20030625.html","publication":"Keyhole Corp. (via Internet Archive)"}},{"id":32683,"text":"In February 2003, the CIA's venture capital arm In-Q-Tel made a strategic investment in Keyhole for approximately $2 million. This was In-Q-Tel's first engagement on behalf of the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA).","confidence":"primary","dateOccurred":"2003-02-15","source":{"title":"IN-Q-TEL ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC INVESTMENT IN KEYHOLE — NIMA Uses Technology to Support the Conflict in Iraq","url":"https://www.iqt.org/library/in-q-tel-announces-strategic-investment-in-keyhole","publication":"In-Q-Tel (iqt.org)"}},{"id":32694,"text":"Keyhole Corp was headquartered in Mountain View, California — the same city as Google (and later Alphabet).","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2001-2004","source":{"title":"GOOGLE ACQUIRES KEYHOLE CORPORATION","url":"https://www.iqt.org/library/google-acquires-keyhole-corporation","publication":"In-Q-Tel (official CIA venture arm site)"}},{"id":32685,"text":"Keyhole raised a total of $527,500 in venture capital from investors including Sony Music Entertainment (Sony venture fund), NVIDIA (via a bundling deal), In-Q-Tel (CIA), and angel investor Brian McClendon.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2001-2003","source":null},{"id":32682,"text":"Keyhole developed EarthViewer, a 3D satellite imagery application that combined multi-terabyte databases of satellite imagery and aerial photography with videogame-style 3D graphics.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2001-2003","source":{"title":"The CIA's EarthViewer was basically the original Google Earth","url":"https://www.businessinsider.com/the-cias-earthviewer-was-the-original-google-earth-2015-11","publication":"Business Insider"}},{"id":32681,"text":"Keyhole Inc was founded in 2001 as a spin-off from Intrinsic Graphics, a 3D graphics company co-founded by Brian McClendon and Michael Jones, both former Silicon Graphics engineers.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"2001-06-15","source":null},{"id":32687,"text":"Keyhole CEO John Hanke served four years with the United States Foreign Service in Washington, D.C. and overseas in Myanmar working on foreign policy issues before founding Keyhole.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":"1990-1994","source":{"title":"John Hanke — Wikipedia","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hanke","publication":"Wikipedia"}},{"id":18370,"text":"Search scope note: No usaspending contracts found for \"Keyhole Inc\" in automated database search as of 2026-04-13. This reflects search coverage limits, not confirmed absence from public record.","confidence":"secondary","dateOccurred":null,"source":null}],"connections":[{"id":5293,"relationshipType":"portfolio_company","description":"In-Q-Tel investment later acquired by Google, became Google Earth","confidence":"confirmed","firstDocumented":null,"lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":109,"name":"In-Q-Tel","slug":"in-q-tel","type":"institution"}},{"id":19406,"relationshipType":"technology_acquisition_target","description":"Keyhole Inc was acquired through In-Q-Tel, which serves the Intelligence Community including NSA. The documented facts mention Keyhole Inc in the context of In-Q-Tel, which provides technology solutions to agencies like NSA.","confidence":"inferential","firstDocumented":"2004","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":86,"name":"National Security Agency (NSA)","slug":"national-security-agency-nsa","type":"institution"}},{"id":14465,"relationshipType":"affiliation","description":"Norman R. Augustine appears in proximity to Keyhole Inc (later Google Earth, originally funded by In-Q-Tel), suggesting a potential association through intelligence community investments.","confidence":"inferential","firstDocumented":"2008","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":4171,"name":"Norman R. Augustine","slug":"norman-r-augustine","type":"person"}},{"id":14404,"relationshipType":"affiliation","description":"Michael M. Crow is listed alongside Christopher Darby and Norman R. Augustine in the context of In-Q-Tel affiliated entities, suggesting a connection to Keyhole Inc through In-Q-Tel.","confidence":"inferential","firstDocumented":"2021","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":4169,"name":"Michael M. Crow","slug":"michael-m-crow","type":"person"}},{"id":14368,"relationshipType":"investor","description":"Keyhole raised venture capital from investors including NVIDIA via a bundling deal.","confidence":"inferential","firstDocumented":"2003","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":24,"name":"Nvidia","slug":"nvidia","type":"company"}},{"id":14215,"relationshipType":"investor","description":"In-Q-Tel (parent of QIC) made early investments in Keyhole Inc., which later became Google Earth; QIC likely facilitated or represented such investment interfaces.","confidence":"inferential","firstDocumented":"2022","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":4167,"name":"In-Q-Tel Interface Center (QIC)","slug":"in-q-tel-interface-center-qic","type":"organization"}},{"id":14369,"relationshipType":"acquired_by","description":"Google acquired Keyhole Corp in October 2004 for approximately $35 million, rebranding EarthViewer as Google Earth in 2005. The acquisition also provided shares to In-Q-Tel.","confidence":"primary","firstDocumented":"2004","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":31231,"name":"Google","slug":"google","type":"company"}},{"id":14367,"relationshipType":"customer_or_end_user","description":"The investment from In-Q-Tel was In-Q-Tel's first engagement on behalf of the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA), which deployed EarthViewer within two weeks to support troops during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.","confidence":"primary","firstDocumented":"2003","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":4182,"name":"National Imagery and Mapping Agency","slug":"national-imagery-and-mapping-agency","type":"government_agency"}},{"id":14366,"relationshipType":"investor","description":"In-Q-Tel is the CIA's venture capital arm and made the $2M investment in Keyhole.","confidence":"primary","firstDocumented":"2003","lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":85,"name":"Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)","slug":"central-intelligence-agency-cia","type":"institution"}},{"id":11333,"relationshipType":"investor","description":"CIA's venture capital arm invested ~$2M in Keyhole in February 2003 for equity and technology access rights on behalf of NIMA (National Imagery and Mapping Agency).","confidence":"primary","firstDocumented":null,"lastDocumented":null,"other":{"id":109,"name":"In-Q-Tel","slug":"in-q-tel","type":"institution"}}],"contradictions":[],"permalink":"https://www.goblinhouse.net/entity/keyhole-inc","timelineUrl":"https://www.goblinhouse.net/entity/keyhole-inc/timeline"}