Stanford Networking Research Center Industy Seminar - Ari Valtanen, Co-Founder & CTO, Solid Information Technology

Topic: "Combining Research & Product Development Successfully in a Small Software Company"

Speaker: Ari Valtanen, Co-Founder, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Solid Information Technology

Abstract

This talk will discuss and review recent trends in building standards compliant Data Management products to changing telecom/networking market. It will look at some of the key points in combining research and product development and illustrate Solid's experiences around delivering innovative products. Case studies include research projects Solid has been involved with in the areas of smart networks, video content analysis, networked delivery, and storage solutions.

Biography

Ari Valtanen has more than 17 years experience in professional software development and delivering innovative products. He co-founded Solid in 1992 and held various senior level positions within the research and development team until 1999. Valtanen served as the company's chief technologist from 1999 to 2000, and as director of product management in 2000. He was named vice president and chief technology officer in 2001. Valtanen served on the Solid board of directors from 1997 to 1999. Prior to co-founding Solid, Valtanen worked as a developer, architect and consultant in both start-up and established software companies for a number of years. He completed his Master's Thesis while working at the Technical Research Centre of Finland. Valtanen holds a Master of Science degree from the Department of Engineering Physics from the Helsinki University of Technology, with majors in Computer Science and Acoustics.