In this monthly feature, we’ll keep you up-to-date on the latest career developments for individuals in the high-performance computing community. Whether it’s a promotion, new company hire, or even an accolade, we’ve got the details. Check in each month for an updated list and you may even come across someone you know, or better yet, yourself!
Dr. Katherine Calvin was appointed to serve as chief scientist and senior climate advisor at NASA. Before NASA, Calvin was an Earth scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Joint Global Change Research Institute. She worked on the institute’s Global Change Analysis Model, a system for exploring and analyzing the relationships between human and Earth systems, and the Department of Energy’s Energy Exascale Earth System Model, a system for analyzing the Earth system.
“Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing our nation – and our planet,” Calvin said. “NASA is a world leader in climate and Earth science. I’m excited to be a part of the team that is helping to advance this important science mission.”
Michelle Johnston Holthaus
Intel Corp. tapped its executive vice president, Michelle Johnston Holthaus, to lead the company’s Client Computing Group. Holthaus will be responsible for all aspects of the business, including strategy, financial performance and product development.
“I am thrilled to take on leadership of Intel’s Client Computing Group, an organization with immense talent and long history of delivering leadership products and platforms that create vibrant, open ecosystems,” Holthaus said. “We have a tremendous opportunity to build on past successes – and even accelerate our pace as we continue to enable our customers and partners to elevate PC experiences.”
DDN, a provider of artificial intelligence and multi-cloud data management solutions, appointed Meredyth Jensen as its chief marketing officer. Prior to DDN, Jensen served as senior vice president of corporate marketing and brand communications at RGP, a global consulting firm.
“I am excited to join DDN at this critical inflection point in the company’s growth trajectory,” said Jensen. “Our customers across commercial, government and academia are grappling with the complexity of how to approach their data management as well as extracting value from it. DDN is perfectly positioned to enable their digital transformation across enterprise workflows, AI and analytics with our award-winning products and solutions.”
Berk Diler Kovos, Paul Jerger, and Erzsebet Vincent
The first class of Quantum Science and Engineering Ph.D. students graduated from the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago. Berk Diler Kovos focused his graduate research on developing quantum bits using transition metal ions. His work looked at creating and characterizing the highly scalable qubit platform.
Paul Jerger researched nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, one of the few quantum systems that can be studied at room temperature. Erzsebet Vincent researched the electronic properties of two-dimensional materials while studying as a graduate student at PME. Her work centered on a novel technique called “optical gating,” which uses different colors of light to control electronic properties in those materials.
Rich Knepper was named director of the Cornell University Center for Advanced Computing, which provides research computing services to Cornell faculty in the sciences, engineering, business, arts, and humanities. Knepper will be responsible for leading the center’s computing and consulting staff that includes systems professionals and PhD-level computational consultants with expertise in astronomy, biology, computer science, informatics, social sciences, physics, and more.
“I look forward to working closely with Cornell researchers to create cyberinfrastructure solutions that enable the computational science which drives their research agendas and grant proposals,” said Knepper. “CAC will also continue to play an important role in the national research community by advancing the science of computing, implementing new technologies, and developing training that closes the diversity gap.”
Multiverse Computing, a Spanish startup in quantum computing for finance, appointed Michel Kurek as the chief executive officer of its French subsidiary headquartered in Paris. Kurek brings over 25 years of experience in the financial industry. Most recently, he served as the global head of algorithmic trading at the Crédit Agricole and Societe Generale groups.
“The unique power of quantum computers will provide answers to the great societal challenges that confront us in sectors such as energy, health and safety,” said Kurek. “My mission is to help French companies, regardless of their size, benefit from these advances. Freed from the computational constraints of today’s NISQ-era quantum computers, the so-called ‘quantum-inspired’ algorithms built on the unparalleled expertise of Multiverse Computing’s teams will enable an immediate return on investment in sectors such as finance and energy.”
Boise State University has named Elizabeth Leake as the new director of Research Computing Services. In this role, Leake will provide “strategic oversight for Boise State’s research computing team in supporting high-performance computing clusters and research cyberinfrastructure, and will lead faculty, staff, and students in using locally-hosted, federated, and cloud-enabled resources.” The founder of the non-profit STEM-Trek organization, Leake and STEM-Trek were recognized with the 2016 and 2017 HPCwire Editors’ Choice and 2020 Readers’ Choice Awards for Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Leadership.
“Elizabeth brings a wealth of experience and skills not only to the Office of Information Technology and research computing but to the entire university. Her knowledge of the national research landscape will be a great asset to Boise State,” said Max Davis-Johnson, chief information officer and associate vice president.
Philippe Mathieu
Palantir Technologies Inc. appointed Philippe Mathieu as the head of the company’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Mathieu will be responsible for driving the expansion of Palantir across the EMEA region. He comes to Palantir from Oracle, where he was executive vice president of EMEA and JAPAC regions.
“Palantir has become the operating system of choice for Enterprises and the demand is growing exponentially,” Mathieu said. “I am thrilled to join the company that employs the best engineers in the industry and to contribute to the acceleration of our global footprint.”
Quantum Computing Inc. appointed William J. McGann as its chief operating and technology officer. He will be responsible for the technical and product engineering aspects of the company. He will also lead QCI’s ready-to-run quantum software initiatives.
“It is an honor and a privilege to join the QCI team to support the execution of the business growth strategy,” said McGann. “As a leader, I look forward to establishing an exciting, fast-paced business rhythm that is customer-focused and leading through innovation. We will aspire to be the best in all that we do and endeavor to become the preeminent leader in delivering quantum solutions to the market that advance customer business and application outcomes.”
Kathryn Mohror and T. Yong Han
The Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program selected Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory computer scientist Kathryn Mohror and materials scientist T. Yong Han as 2022 fellows. Mohror and Han are two of the 33 individuals representing all 17 of the DOE national labs this year, with professional backgrounds spanning technical, operational and strategic domains.
Mohror is a computer scientist working in LLNL’s Center for Applied Scientific Computing in the Computing Directorate. She has worked at the Lab for 12 years, starting as a postdoctoral researcher and is now a group leader for the Parallel Systems Group in CASC. T. Yong Han is a materials scientist and group leader for Functional Material Synthesis & Integration in LLNL’s Materials Science Division.
Jerome Nadel
BrainChip Holdings Ltd, a provider of ultra-low power high performance artificial intelligence technology and the commercial producer of neuromorphic AI chips and IP, appointed Jerome Nadel as its chief marketing officer. Nadel will be responsible for driving corporate and product marketing to support the full commercialization of its Akida neuromorphic computing platforms.
“BrainChip advancements in neuromorphic AI are truly transformative and will be the computational foundation of smart sensing in all edge devices,” said Nadel. “Our ground-breaking IP is commercially ready and relevant, and it’s exciting to see it being adopted and deployed by industry leaders. I’m excited to play a part in accelerating the company’s trajectory.”
Peptilogics, a biotech company that designs peptide therapeutics, promoted Nicholas Nystrom to chief technology officer from his role at the company as senior vice president and head of computation and data. As CTO, Nystrom will lead technology strategy, as well as the implementation and advancement of Peptilogics’ computational peptide design platform.
“Technology innovation is essential to enable the rapid design of best-in-class peptide drugs to treat diseases with large unmet medical needs,” said Nystrom. “Our platform demonstrates great promise to accelerate the design of safe, effective peptide therapeutics by intelligently navigating complex chemical and biological spaces. I look forward to continuing to oversee its development and the many doors it may open to the largely untapped diversity of potential peptide therapeutics.”
Q-CTRL, provider of quantum control engineering solutions to accelerate the development of quantum technology, appointed Aravind Ratnam as its chief strategy officer. Most recently, Ratnam served as head of products for Sense Photonics and vice president of products for AEye Inc.
“I am honored to join the Q-CTRL team to help grow the company and bring quantum computing closer to reality,” said Ratnam. “Q-CTRL’s technology has endless applications from space to transportation to climate science, and I look forward to being part of the technology’s transformative growth.”
Philip Roth, a group leader in the National Center for Computational Sciences (NCCS) at the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory, has been named the general chair of SC24. Roth has a long history with the SC series, attending all the conferences since 2000 and helping to organize them at a chair or vice chair level since 2011. He served as the executive director of SC17, a position that assists the general chair, which he’s taken on again for SC22 (to be held November 13–18 in Dallas, Texas). According to the SC organizing committee, SC24’s location will be announced in November 2023 at SC23, but it widely believed the event will be held in Atlanta. The SC23 location has not yet been made public.
Dr. Yong Rui, Lenovo’s chief technology officer and senior vice president, was elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world’s largest general scientific society, and the publisher of the prestigious scientific journal Science. Rui was elected for “distinguished contributions to the field of multimedia computing and AI applications, particularly in multimedia analysis, retrieval and understanding,” according to the AAAS.
“It’s an honor to be elected an AAAS fellow,” said Rui. “I’d like to extend my heartfelt thanks to those who supported my nomination.”
The Physics of Quantum Electronics Conference named Yoshihisa Yamamoto, NTT Research Physics & Informatics lab director and emeritus professor of applied physics and electrical engineering at Stanford University, one of the three winners of the Willis E. Lamb Award for Laser Science and Quantum Optics.
“This is a tremendous honor, as Professor Lamb provided many insights that have guided us over the years,” said Yamamoto. “I would also like to congratulate Drs. Anderson and Liu and thank the organizers of the PQE for providing this occasion to meet and discuss important topics in our broader fields of research.”
David Zinsner
Intel Corp. appointed David Zinsner as its executive vice president and chief financial officer. Zinsner has more than 20 years of financial and operational experience in semiconductors and manufacturing, including most recently as executive vice president and CFO at Micron Technology, Inc.
“I am excited to join Intel, a company I’ve long admired with a storied history of innovation and technology leadership,” said Zinsner. “Intel’s scale, re-invigorated culture and depth of technical talent positions the company to capitalize on the unprecedented demand for semiconductors across the globe. I look forward to working with Pat and the rest of the leadership team to help drive the IDM 2.0 strategy forward and create long-term value for shareholders.”
2022 IEEE Computer Science Fellows
The IEEE Computer Society (IEEE CS) announced that 56 IEEE CS members and 14 IEEE members evaluated by the IEEE CS Fellow Evaluation Committee are to be elevated to IEEE Fellow status in 2022. These include Torsten Hoefler (ETH Zürich) for contributions to large-scale parallel processing systems and supercomputers, and Rajeev Thakur (Argonne National Laboratory) for contributions to high-performance interfaces for scalable computing systems. The grade of Fellow recognizes unusual distinction in the profession.
The Association for Computing Machinery named 71 members ACM Fellows. They were recognized for their outstanding accomplishments in computing and information technology and/or outstanding service to ACM and the larger computing community. Among the 71 members were David A. Bader from the New Jersey Institute of Technology and Robert B. Ross from Argonne National Laboratory.
Bader was recognized for his contributions to high-performance computing systems, graph analytics, and technical leadership in parallel computing. Ross was recognized for his contributions to high-performance computing in storage and parallel I/O. For more of the 2021 ACM Fellows, visit here.
To read last month’s edition of Career Notes, click here.
Do you know someone that should be included in next month’s list? If so, send us an email at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
