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So the two of them worked together on “the AWS project”?! Interesting…
Presumably AWS as in Amazon Web Services?!For all we know, Chris Jones could have alluded to an Aussie-style Weet-Bix Stacking challenge that ex-Perth resident Anup Vanarse had introduced to the US-based BrainChip staff after moving to California…
(Alternatively AWS could stand for Automatic Warning System (train safety system), Autonomous Weapon System and lots of other things…)
Assuming we are indeed talking about Amazon Web Services here:
Could this LinkedIn comment possibly be a reference to a small LLM having been or still being developed by our company, in order to be made available through AWS, eg via Amazon Bedrock?
Currently, however, they refer to (large and expensive to train) foundation models only:Speaking of AWS and “projects”:
Less than two weeks ago, AWS introduced “in beta a new generative AI-powered personal assistant for sellers, codenamed Project Amelia.”
Amazon launches a powerful new generative AI-based selling assistant codenamed Project Amelia
Launching today, this personal AI assistant was built using Amazon Bedrock and offers tailored business insights to boost productivity and drive seller growth.
www.aboutamazon.com
Whenever AWS comes up, I can’t help but think of a potential “connection” to them by way of Ron Diamant (formerly at Annapurna Labs, which was acquired by AWS in 2015), who I have reason to believe is the son of Mauro Diamant, BrainChip’s sales representative in Israel.
Playing private investigator tends to be immensely time-consuming, but can be soooo rewarding, when you manage to discover an hitherto unknown link or finally find that missing puzzle piece you were looking for…
Today I discovered another connection between AWS and Brainchip, namely via the Israeli Diamant family! A gem of a connection, so to say, as the Jewish surname Diamant means “diamond”.
Mauro Diamant, as we all know, is the GM of IPro Silicon IP Ltd, which in late June was announced as Brainchip’s sales representative in Israel.
Now enter my sleuthing and conclusion:
His son Ron, who - just like his Dad - graduated from the renowned Technion - Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, happens to live in California and works for AWS as “Senior Principal Engineer and Chief Architect for Inferentia and Trainium”, AWS’s high-performance machine learning chips:
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He was one of the first seven employees of Israeli company Annapurna Labs, which was acquired by AWS in 2015 and actually plays a major part in AWS’s success story - here is an interview with one of their founders:
How silicon innovation became the ‘secret sauce’ behind AWS’s success
Nafea Bshara, AWS vice president and distinguished engineer, discusses Annapurna Lab’s path to silicon success; Annapurna co-founder was a featured speaker at AWS Silicon Innovation Day virtual event.www.amazon.science
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After AWS had acquired Annapurna Labs, Ron Diamant relocated to California and has impressively climbed the career ladder ever since… See his bio above.
Some of you may wonder how likely it is that Mauro and Ron are indeed father and son.
Well, rest assured my claim is not totally unfounded and isn’t merely based on the fact that they are both from Israel and share the same surname.
I chanced upon this Oct 2020 interview with Ron Diamant, reposted by none other than Mauro Diamant himself, who congratulates him and says how proud he is of him!
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20 min with leaders - Ron Diamant
Mabruk Ron for a lesson in leadership, for the demonstration in actions of the very best side of the Israeli character, and for showing AWS as a great organization. Proud of you!www.linkedin.com
During the interview, Ron mentions he used to work for (now defunct) semiconductor company Zoran (that’s where Mauro started his career as well) and later mentions that he consulted his father on whether to join the newly founded start-up Annapurna Labs: “I also went and talked to my Dad. My Dad works in the field, and he knew all these folks and said: ‘Thumbs up from me! I know these guys, and these guys know what they are doing. Go for it!’ ”
(from 8:16 min)
And last but not least I found this genealogical record online:
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So I’d say it is highly likely that Mauro and Ron are indeed father and son. They also resemble each other optically. Feel free to check with either of them directly.
This postulated family connection could in fact be one of the reasons why Mauro Diamant was selected to represent Brainchip in Israel; mind you, I don’t mean this in a negative way at all (along the lines of nepotism); on the contrary, it is excellent to have first-hand references by experts in their field, even though Mauro is obviously an expert in his own right, with a decades long strong background in sales and business development in the semiconductor industry in Israel.
Although in my eyes the design of IPro Silicon IP’s website leaves much to be desired…
Or maybe it was the other way round and Mauro was actually the one who got AWS in touch with the Brainchip team via his son?
At any rate, almost a year ago, Ron shared the below post which links the AWS Inferentia chip he helped design to AWS Robotics that in turn now appear to have links with Brainchip through ANT61. We are all somehow connected it seems.
Enable ML Inferencing at Scale using Amazon SageMaker | Amazon Robotics case study | AWS
Amazon Robotics used Amazon SageMaker to develop a sophisticated machine learning model that replaced manual scanning in Amazon fulfillment centers. Amazon Robotics set out to use machine learning to streamline a bottleneck in its inventory stowing process. The company overcame challenges in...aws.amazon.com
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I’ll leave you with this glowing praise of Ron that will have made his Dad immensely proud yet again, and rightly so. What an impressive achievement!
Wonderful to have connections like this in the extended Brainchip family…
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to pick Ascension Day, though? 
