Joining Optalysys as CRO in Residence: Continuing the Journey in Privacy
I’m excited to share that I have joined Optalysys as CRO in Residence, an opportunity that allows me to continue pursuing a mission I’ve been dedicated to for the last decade: helping organizations expand and globalize their commercial strategies, advancing secure computing, accelerating the adoption of privacy-enhancing technologies, and ensuring organizations can unlock the value of their data without compromising trust.
A Decade in Privacy
My journey in this space has taken me through the full spectrum of privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs). From early work in secure multiparty computation that led to an exit to Coinbase, to exploring the possibilities of homomorphic encryption. I have seen how each PET offers distinct strengths. In some use cases, FHE provides unmatched benefits; in others, multiparty computation is the right answer. Increasingly, organizations are also looking to trusted execution environments, federated learning, synthetic data, differential privacy, and innovations around zero-knowledge proofs.
My view has always been that privacy is not solved by a single technology in isolation. The real opportunity lies in the ability to blend, select, and complement these approaches, matching the right PET to the right challenge. Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of collaborating with innovative organizations that brought these technologies to market, and in the process, I’ve witnessed the PETs landscape mature from academic promise into enterprise-ready solutions.
The Challenge Ahead: Bridging the Performance Gap
Despite incredible progress, one barrier has remained constant: performance. The computational overhead of privacy-preserving technologies has slowed adoption. While regulations and compliance concerns often set the stage, performance has consistently been the reason organizations hesitate to move forward.
This is where Optalysys changes the game. By leveraging silicon photonics to accelerate encrypted computing, Optalysys is tackling the performance gap head-on. They are redefining what is possible with encrypted workloads, removing the technical ceiling that has long limited the PETs ecosystem.
Why Optalysys, Why Now
I was first introduced to Optalysys during my time at Duality, and I remember being absolutely blown away by where they were headed. Their vision was so unique, so different from anything else I had encountered within hardware, and it was immediately clear that they were operating on an entirely new level of innovation.
What sets Optalysys apart is not only their vision-forward technology, but also the unbelievable team behind it. They have earned the trust and support of the broader PETs community by showing what is possible when you think differently about hardware acceleration. While much of the market has focused on incremental gains through CPUs, GPUs, or FPGAs, Optalysys has boldly advanced the use of silicon photonics — an approach that redefines what’s achievable in encrypted computing.
Strategically, they are positioning themselves not just as another accelerator company, but as the foundation for the next generation of secure computing infrastructure. By targeting the performance barrier that has long limited the adoption of privacy-enhancing technologies, Optalysys is building the bridge between what has been possible in theory and what can now be delivered in practice. That level of innovation, combined with the depth of expertise and vision of their team, makes Optalysys a company unlike any other in the space.
Looking Ahead
Privacy has never been just a regulatory checkbox. It is a competitive advantage, a driver of innovation, and a foundation for trust. For me, stepping into the role of CRO in Residence is not about titles. It is about the opportunity to apply what I’ve learned, the highs, the lows, and the critical lessons along the way, to once again roll up my sleeves and help lead a commercial strategy driven by true innovation.
This role is about being part of a transformation that will enable secure computing, encrypted learning, and collaboration at scale, across industries and across borders. That is powerful. I am deeply honored to join Optalysys and continue building toward a future where privacy, powered by innovation, is not a constraint but an enabler of growth.
