Thomas Jakobsen is head of research and development at IO Interactive, where he is developing new technology for the in-house engine, Glacier. He created the physics simulation and the 3D pathfinder for IO's Hitman: Codename 47. Jakobsen earned his M.Sc. in engineering from The Technical University of Denmark, where he also obtained his Ph.D. in mathematics. He spent a number of years in academia and has published several scientific articles on cryptanalysis. He began programming at age nine with a Sinclair ZX80. In 1986, he co-designed Vikings for the Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC. In the late 1980s, he developed tools for the Amiga classics Hybris and Battle Squadron.