It's not surprising that no one on here managed to guess who the CEO as I don't think there were any news releases about him leaving his past job. No one on here even knew he was leaving. However, the timing of the CEO announcement was another successful dot join IMO:
https://hotcopper.com.au/threads/2021-brn-discussion.5928722/page-28998?post_id=57510163There have been too many posts on here today to remember who said what, but I think some of the comments of here have been strong factors supporting the CEO choice:
-Previously worked at Fusion-io (where he worked with Steve Wosniak). Links to Apple: ~$2.5 trillion MC
-Closed deals with Microsoft (solid list of contacts): ~$2.5 trillion MC
-Closed deals with Cisco: ~500 billion MC-Previously worked at HP: ~$36 billion MC
-Fusion-io sold to Sandisk (list of contacts): ~$15 billion MC
If you add up all the market caps of the 5 companies above and assume we manage to get 1% of their future revenues (without factoring in the huge amount of growth Akida will enable), this would equate to ~$55 billion MC.
Sean seems like a good addition to the company. Especially when you factor in how Brainchip already have employees with solid contacts to other big companies like Dell, Western Digital, NASA etc.. While Brainchip already had good relationships with some of the above listed companies (such as Cisco), it never hurts if the new guy already knows them too. It helps keep the ball moving and I think is quite useful in COVID times, where virtual meetings make it more challenging to showcase your capabilities to people you haven't met before.
He has a strong semi-conductor background and would have some understanding of both hardware and software from some of his previous roles (such as at Fusion-io). This is important because the key differentiators of Akida are both hardware (revolutionary neuromorphic architecture) and software (MetaTF). The CEO needs to be able to sell the importance of both.
I feel even an average calibre candidate would have performed well in the new CEO role due to the level of support they would have from the high quality hires at the table around him. However, having someone like Sean with top tier qualifications and contacts should push Brainchip to next-level highs.
Like most of the others on here, I'm quite happy with the new CEO appointment. This marks the beginning of the phase investors are most looking forward to. The one where we start to see partnerships, contracts and eventually Akida-embedded products rolling out.The board has shown great insight here IMO and while it's early days, judging by his previous record I think he is a worthy individual.
Pure speculation, DYOR
(20min delay)