Our dinner with Michael Lebby and John Zyskind:
It’s a bit hard to get my thoughts going today. But I will try. Still need to read all the comments here; So forgive me for repeating some topics.
I felt a bit bad for Michael Lebby knowing he is super busy while getting dragged around all over Belgium and gave us yet again his full attention. But he said he was ‘fine/good’. ‘I love doing this, meeting all of you’, smiling, shaking hands and calling the people he meet by their first name. And it really shows, how he is always willing to talk about his favourite topic, Polymer Photonics. He is relentless, focussed, controlled energized, confident and has no fear from other potential pirates stealing our market share. And the business wants our stuff. And they will get it. A man with a mission at hand and not letting go. With Zyskind to solve whatever needs to be solved. I didn’t know the man was responsible for DWDM optical network making the internet a lot faster and cheaper.
At one point I wanted Michael to eat his shrimp croquettes, it was getting cold. He can talk for hours, and addresses everything the Hermanator and Jeunke was throwing at him. They both lost. Lol
He knows exactly what he is talking about and industry leaders knows that and they want to be part it. Off course no names but he did say he was approached by an AI company showing interest during his last EPIC conference. I still need to look around to see who it could have been.
I think it was a question from Walter about the tiny ‘gain’ our technology had on power savings coming from the modulators. In a way it is he said, “it’s a tiny percentage if you look at the modulator on itself”. “BUT, realize this is a chain of devices making the whole datacenter a much greener and a more power efficient place”. “If you need less chips and less power while having more speeds and square space to fill with more efficient devices, you win all together”. “A small device changes the architecture on how we will use the datacentre’s of tomorrow”.
I was asking about the foundry significance having polymer based modulators coming out at the other end of their production lanes. Michael said that is ‘very significant indeed’. Having another place besides our lab creating modulators (read volume production) is a big deal.
I’m sure my friends at the table are addressing here the short attacks on our company. I have nothing to add besides it will all go away when we get our contracts going. Our stock will jump a 10 fold in a matter of a few hours when LWLG announce partners and revenue guidance. At one point I said something like ‘Michael, let’s get back to the OTC’. I was joking off course but felt some truth in that silly comment. At this point I hate the Wallstreet mafia. But let’s not get emotional, only about the good stuff.
Ha, I successfully piggy bagged a question in reference to my other datacenter investment. How low could I go? Everybody knew I was talking about S……. without naming them but I’m so bullish on it because we all talk about switches, routers, MZ modulators, waveguides, etc. But to connect them all you NEED cables of all sort. A big change is taking place there too.
My question was if it was possible to build in a MZ modulator(s) on the opposite sides of an active optical cable or AOC? Having the modulation going into the cable and not in the servers could possible make an more efficient datacenter network?
“That’s another possibility, and another vertical (market) for us if such a development would occur” The problem that Michael saw was the ‘slow’ VCEL laser to be added in the AOC in order to modulate fast. It was my understanding there wasn’t enough power coming from the laser source to get these high speeds we need. But nothing is impossible he said. Could be in a few years. Nobody was expecting technologies like Barium Titanate and/or Thin film lithium niobate a few years ago. Innovation never stops.
I was also asking about Micro Ring Resonators and if they are getting some ‘ground’. ‘They all are getting ‘ground’ and are successful in a way but that doesn’t mean they have a better solution then we have’. MRR’s are very tricky because if the temperature controlled device isn’t perfectly controlled, it doesn’t work. Simple as that. And that is something nobody wants.
To date these players still need to prove a lot more then a paper or a prototype of some sort. No worries there. “Competition is something we look at but not fear“
What a great bunch of people we had at the table. I’m always positively surprised by you guys. Also talked to a few wifes, including Michael’s, and there too I experienced warm and genuine people.
I told Mark Smith to buy some shares of his company just because I like him so much. It’s all about people. And that’s why I’m here (and for the money too)
We are golden in friendship and in business.
Take care guys and girls.
AI
