Your reputation is that you are a difficult person to work with. Some people have called you a "hothead."
Well, I am a perfectionist, and I certainly have a temper. Sometimes that temper is not well served, and I guess I have the ability to irritate people. If people are not willing to have a rational discussion with me, then things get very, very difficult. I am always pushing to help the company succeed, but some people feel their egos need to be served.
You are considered one of the leading engineers in the routing community. Venture capitalists will pour millions of dollars into a start-up just because you're involved. Why do you think you are viewed as such a rock star?
First of all, I am not a rock star. A lot of this publicity has been internally generated. I have had no control over it, and I certainly do not deserve it. I am an engineer. My first goal is not to sell product, it's to make the customer happy. And I do strange things, like tell the truth, which customers appreciate but sometimes the company does not.
Now that you're done with Procket, what are you working on?
I am doing stuff on the side, but it is not of relevance to this conversation.
Do you think you will join another start-up?
Quite possibly; I would much rather be in a start-up than a large company. My style is much more about getting things done, and I prefer the freedom rather than the many layers of process that are usually necessary in a big company. I don't have anything particular in mind right now, but I am keeping my eyes open.
What are customers looking for now in a core IP router?
Customers need a system that they can install and have operational in their networks for five to 10 years. That means you need an architecture that is going to be able to sustain Internet growth rates for 10 years without changing the basic infrastructure.
What do you think about Cisco's new core router, the CRS-1, which was just introduced last month? The company boasts it can scale to 92 terabits per second.
They missed the mark. Although it's significantly bigger than I had originally thought, it should still be an order of magnitude larger. Customers that have vision and understand the growth of the Internet will probably be disappointed with this product.
