Grant Petty

Petty attended South Tech in Shepparton, Australia, where he used school computers and television-production facilities. He also gained work experience at local television station GMV6.⁠[1]

He subsequently studied computer electronics at Shepparton TAFE.⁠[1]

Petty recalled starting as a post-production engineer in 1988. Seeing a DaVinci grading system inspired him to pursue work as a telecine engineer.⁠[2]

After post-production engineering work in Melbourne and Singapore and an earlier capture-card venture, Petty returned to Australia and founded Blackmagic Design in 2001. He sought to move professional video processing onto general-purpose computers and reduce dependence on costly dedicated equipment.⁠[3]

Blackmagic launched DeckLink, making 10-bit uncompressed video more affordable for Macintosh OS X users.⁠[4]

Following the DaVinci acquisition, Petty wrote that Blackmagic was rehiring and expanding Resolve engineers, increasing Revival development, and returning some research engineers from management to technical work.⁠[2]

Blackmagic announced a Mac software edition of Resolve 7.0 priced at US$995, expanding the professional grading system’s potential user base.⁠[5]

The company announced the free DaVinci ResolveDaVinci ResolveDaVinci Resolve is post-production software developed by Blackmagic Design, combining editing, color grading, visual effects, motion graphics, audio post-production and photo editing. Available in free and paid Studio editions, it originated as a professional grading system from DaVinci Systems.Open the full entry Lite, planned for July. Petty later described making free grading tools available to more creators as an important change.⁠[6][7]

In the first Blackmagic Cinema Camera announcement, Petty described an ambition to put filmmaking features into an affordable, compact professional camera, drawing on his experience as a telecine engineer.⁠[8]

In the Resolve 21 announcement, Petty highlighted the new Photo page, bringing node-based grading tools to still photographers and colorists and enabling remote collaboration.⁠[9]

Barber sued Petty over alleged obstruction of a share sale; the merits remained unresolved.⁠[10][11]

In interviews, Petty emphasized access to professional equipment for students and young creators. He argued that new products require imagining needs that do not yet exist, trying ideas and evaluating results after launch, rather than relying solely on existing market research.⁠[7]

He told SmartCompany that hiring and management should prioritize practical engineering experience and give decision-making authority to people who understand the work. After acquisitions, he sought to restore technical teams’ engagement with their products.⁠[12]

Blackmagic Design: Official website: https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/ (opens in a new window). The accounts below belong to the company.⁠[4]

Blackmagic Design X: https://x.com/Blackmagic_News (opens in a new window).⁠[13]

Blackmagic Design LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blackmagic-design/ (opens in a new window).⁠[14]

Blackmagic Design YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: https://www.youtube.com/@BlackmagicDesignOfficial (opens in a new window).⁠[15]