McClendon is the visionary creator of what became Google Earth and later, Google Maps and Google Street View. Brian McClendon is a 1986 KU engineering graduate, who founded Keyhole, Inc, a startup company that developed a web-based maps product called Keyhole and a language called KML - Keyhole Markup Language.

Google acquired Keyhole in 2004, and Keyhole's Earth Viewer reached a wide public as Google Earth in 2005.

Google Earth Engine is a cloud-based geospatial analysis platform that enables users to visualize and analyze satellite images of our planet. Scientists and non-profits use Earth Engine for remote sensing research, predicting disease outbreaks, natural resource management, and more.