Alumni Headlines
 Alumni Headlines gives you the latest news on the accomplishments of your fellow alumni. If you have a news story for us, contact us at ini-alumni@cmu.edu.
Verso Names Christina Brazdziunas Chief Technology Officer
February 28, 2008 - Christina (Chris) Brazdziunas (MSIN, Class of 1990) has been named Chief Technology Officer of Verso Technologies, Inc., a global provider of next generation network solutions. Chris previously held multiple senior engineering and product management roles developing applications and switching solutions in the wireless and VoIP domains. Over the past 5 years with Verso, Chris has been instrumental in the development of Verso's Vclear VoIP switching and application products.
"Chris has shown her ability to handle an enormous and complex workload across several products and business units," said Mark Dunaway, President and Chief Operating Officer for Verso. "Chris has continued to step up and get the job done and has provided management a clear voice regarding the technology of this company."
David J. Smith (MS01) Publishes Book with Cisco Press
 December 27, 2007 - INI alumnus David J. Smith (MS01) recently co-authored Router Security Strategies: Securing IP Network Traffic Plans along with fellow Cisco colleague Gregg Schudel. Published by Cisco Press, the book discusses router security and gives comprehensive instruction on how to secure IP networking traffic planes. It is the first book to take an in-depth look at IP traffic plans and applicable security techniques for routers.
A member of the INI's first graduating class, David reports that his education at Carnegie Mellon has "served [him] well." "I've been with Cisco for over twelve years working on some of the largest, most complex and most reliable IP/MPLS networks," said David, who is a consulting system engineer supporting the service provider organization.
The book will be available in January 2008 and can be purchased from Cisco Press and Amazon.
INI Alumnus Jesse Schell Talks Online Games
 As part of the INI seminar series, innovator Jesse Schell presented "Design of Online Games" to INI students on Friday, February 16 at the Distributed Education Center.
Jesse Schell got his start making networked games as an INI student in 1993, when he and three other students created the NVR system. For this talk, Jesse discussed the design issues and technical issues that arise when designing and building multiplayer networked games, including Toontown Online, on which Jesse was lead designer. Jesse talked about the possible future of online gaming, and how INI students could be a part of it.
Jesse is the CEO of Pittsburgh's largest videogame studio, Schell Games, and he is the former chairman of the International Game Developers Association. In 2004, he was named one of the world's Top 100 Young Innovators by Technology Review, MIT's magazine of innovation.
SNOCAP Hires INI Alumnus Bryan Kuntz
 INI alumnus Bryan Kuntz, who graduated from the MSIN program in 2002, has recently begun working at a San Francisco startup called SNOCAP  . SNOCAP is the latest venture of Shawn Fanning, Jordan Mendelson, and Ron Conway, the creators of the original Napster. Their new company leverages partnerships with major record labels to create a large repository of music ownership information that can be used by online retailers and peer-to-peer networks.
Kuntz joined SNOCAP in December, after working at Oracle for three and a half years as an applications engineer creating cost accounting applications for manufacturing companies. Kuntz is enthusiastic about his new job and the responsibilities and opportunities that working for a startup company presents. "At a startup you have the freedom to seek out projects that interest you, and your contributions to the company are tangible," he says. Kuntz is a senior database engineer at SNOCAP, where he codes, debugs, and fine-tunes database applications until they perform as well as they possibly can. "I really like the people and the management style at SNOCAP," Kuntz says. "There is a lot of optimism and momentum."
Kuntz feels that his INI education was an excellent preparation for his work at SNOCAP. "SNOCAP looks for well-rounded people who aren't just limited to the technical side or the business side of things," he says. "The INI looks for and helps to develop people like that."
INI Alumnus Jesse Schell One of Pittsburgh's 40 Under 40
 November 14, 2005 - INI alumnus Jesse Schell was recently selected by Pittsburgh Magazine as one of Pittsburgh's 40 Under 40 - forty young professionals who make Pittsburgh a better place to live. The winners were honored at a ceremony on November 11, 2005 at the SouthSide Works and are featured in the November issue of Pittsburgh Magazine.
Schell is an assistant professor of entertainment technology and the CEO of Schell Games, a company that develops innovate video games. Formerly, he was creative director of the Walt Disney Imagineering VR Studio, where he worked as a designer, programmer and manager on several projects for Disney theme parks and DisneyQuest. Schell is also the coordinator of the Pittsburgh Chapter of the International Game Developers Association.
This is not the first time Schell has been singled out for his achievement. In 2004, Schell was named one of the world's 100 Top Young Innovators by MIT's Technology Review.
Start-Ups Find Favor in 'Risk Averse' Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on Clearspring, a start-up created by former INI students Hooman Radfar and Austin Fath
"The past few months have been crazy for Radfar and Austin Fath, 25, Clearspring's chief technology officer. The pair have been zipping back and forth between Pittsburgh and the West Coast, taking in the Silicon Valley scene, talking to investors, meeting with researchers and other tech veterans, and getting advice on how they should forge ahead."
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INI Alum Laurie Priddy named new Chief Operating Office of MX Logic, Inc.
MX Logic, Inc., a leading provider of innovative email defense solutions that ensure email protection and security for businesses, service providers, government organizations, resellers and their customers, has appointed Laurie Priddy to serve as chief operations officer.
Priddy brings to MX Logic over 20 years of experience in the Internet messaging and telecommunications industries. In her new position, she is responsible for managing day-to-day company operations, including professional services, customer service, operations, the MX Logic Threat Center and product management.
"Laurie is one of the most distinguished technology executives in the telecommunications and Internet industries, and MX Logic is honored to have her join our executive team," said John Street, CEO, MX Logic." Her messaging-industry background and her results-oriented leadership experience will help MX Logic achieve new levels of revenue growth and
technological leadership."
Two Faculty Among "Top Young Innovators"
Golan Levin and Jesse Schell |
Golan Levin, assistant professor of electronic time-based media, and Jesse Schell, instructor of entertainment technology at Carnegie Mellon, have been named to the 2004 list of the world's 100 Top Young Innovators by Technology Review, MIT's magazine of innovation.
The TR100, chosen by the editors of Technology Review and an elite panel of judges, consists of 100 individuals under age 35 whose innovative work in technology has a profound impact on today's world. This year's nominees are recognized for their contributions in transforming the nature of technology and business in industries such as biotechnology and medicine, computing and nanotechnology.
"The nominations of Levin and Schell are a testament to Carnegie Mellon's support of interdisciplinary innovation," said Carnegie Mellon Provost Mark Kamlet. "We are honored to have such highly skilled and trained artists associated with the College of Fine Arts. Their recognition is another example of how Carnegie Mellon successfully integrates arts and technology."
"In the five years since we began naming our annual selection of the world's top innovators under age 35, inclusion among the TR100 has become one of the most prestigious awards for young innovators around the world, " said David Rotman, executive editor of Technology Review.
Read the Carnegie Mellon Press Release
Creating a Start-up: Hooman Radfar and J. Austin Fath
In 2004, INI MS14 alums Hooman Radfar and J. Austin Fath launched Clearspring, a company focused on semantic information integration software.
“Organizations today face a pressing problem handling information,” says Radfar, Clearspring’s CEO. “Information is locked away in inflexible containers without a useful, shared source of information.”
In this haphazard data environment, Radfar explains, “frustrated users and developers waste countless hours searching for mission-critical information.”
“Clearspring’s Ontologix targets large enterprises, empowering them with the ability to integrate distributed data assets into a dynamically updated, meaningfully structured, shared virtual information source—unleashing a revolution of new possibilities. Benefits include lower IT costs, improved information quality, increased total information, decreased information access time,” among other advantages, Radfar states. We see our primary markets in financial services, government, and the pharmaceutical industry.”
Clearspring has established operations in Dormont (south of Pittsburgh), raised initial capital and completed development of an initial prototype and product specifications. Clearspring is currently working on the back-end solution for the Carnegie Mellon Cylab portal MySecureCyberspace.com and is negotiating several other service deals.
When asked how the INI has contributed to his entrepreneurial path, Hooman says, “The INI attracts students with a passion to impact the business world with high technology, providing a fertile environment for the creative exchange of business ideas. Students have the opportunity to develop these ideas while completing the unique interdisciplinary curriculum offered by the INI.”
The Clearspring team includes MS14 alums Hooman Radfar, Chief Executive Officer and J. Austin Fath, Chief Technology Officer; MS15 Adam Cecchetti, Project Manager; and Cyrus Radfar, Software Engineering Intern.
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