Wei Yen
Encyclopedia
Dr. Wei Yen is a software developer
and entrepreneur
. He has been involved with several companies, including most recently as chairman and founder of AiLive
. Dr. Yen and his brother David Yen published the paper "Data Coherence Problem in a Multicache System" along with King-sun Fu
which describes a practical cache coherence protocol.
mini-supercomputer. The system was a combination of a VLIW ECL-based processor used for scientific applications and a multi-processor system designed for a bus architecture based on their Cache Coherence protocol.
Wei served as Senior Vice President of SGI
. In 1996, Dr. Yen left SGI and founded TVsoft, a maker of interactive software for television setup devices. It was renamed Navio, a company that merged with Oracle's Network Computer (NCI). It became liberate and then went public in July, 1999. It went up at a $12 Billion valuation in early 2000 with a revenue run rate of $25 Million.
In parallel, Wei Yen founded a company called ArtX
, employed with former SGI graphics engineers. ArtX received the contract to deliver the Nintendo Gamecube
's Flipper graphics chip. It was acquired in February 2000 for $400 Million by ATI. It led to the greatly improved R300 graphics chip family. Wei later joined ATI's board of directors.
Wei Yen is the chairman and founder of AiLive
, the company partnered with Nintendo
in developing software tools for programmers working with the Wii Remote
controller and Wii MotionPlus
attachment.
He is also the founder of iGware, a company that offers cloud computer services to its customers. Its most important customer is Nintendo - almost all of the companies founded by Wei Yen seem to share Nintendo as their main customer. iGware's cloud services power the online services of the Nintendo DS, the Nintendo 3DS, the Nintendo Wii and soon the Nintendo Wii U. However, in July 2011, Acer, of which Wei Yen is a former board member, acquired the US-based iGware for 320 million US-$ and therefore, iGware will become a part of Acer's company structure and will continue to provide cloud services. In this context, iGware's US-team will collaborate with new teams in Taiwan and China. Furthermore, iGware will change its name to Acer Cloud Technology Co and will continue to be headed by Wei Yen.
Software developer
A software developer is a person concerned with facets of the software development process. Their work includes researching, designing, developing, and testing software. A software developer may take part in design, computer programming, or software project management...
and entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. He has been involved with several companies, including most recently as chairman and founder of AiLive
AiLive
AiLive Inc. is a software company based in Mountain View, California. The company was founded in 2000 by software programmer and developer Wei Yen. The company has worked closely with Nintendo on the development of motion-sensing hardware, tools and software for the Wii video game...
. Dr. Yen and his brother David Yen published the paper "Data Coherence Problem in a Multicache System" along with King-sun Fu
King-Sun Fu
Dr. King-Sun Fu was a professor at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. He was instrumental in the founding of IAPR, served as its first president, and is widely recognized for his extensive contributions to the field of pattern recognition .In honor of the memory of Professor King-Sun...
which describes a practical cache coherence protocol.
Career
Wei Yen served as the Director of Software Engineering for Cydrome Inc, where he worked with his brother David, who served as the Director of Hardware Engineering. They were the major contributors to the Cydra-5Cydra-5
The Cydra-5 departmental supercomputer is the first minisupercomputer designed by Cydrome. It was completed in 1987. At that time Cydra-5 cost from $0.5 million to $1 million, but achieved one-third to one-fifth performance of supercomputers which cost around $10 million to $20 million.The Cydra-5...
mini-supercomputer. The system was a combination of a VLIW ECL-based processor used for scientific applications and a multi-processor system designed for a bus architecture based on their Cache Coherence protocol.
Wei served as Senior Vice President of SGI
Silicon Graphics
Silicon Graphics, Inc. was a manufacturer of high-performance computing solutions, including computer hardware and software, founded in 1981 by Jim Clark...
. In 1996, Dr. Yen left SGI and founded TVsoft, a maker of interactive software for television setup devices. It was renamed Navio, a company that merged with Oracle's Network Computer (NCI). It became liberate and then went public in July, 1999. It went up at a $12 Billion valuation in early 2000 with a revenue run rate of $25 Million.
In parallel, Wei Yen founded a company called ArtX
ArtX
ArtX was a company formed in 1997 by a group of engineers from Silicon Graphics, Inc. who had worked on the Nintendo 64's graphics chip. The company was focused on delivering a PC graphics chip that was both high performance and cost effective, and hoped to be able to instantly compete with...
, employed with former SGI graphics engineers. ArtX received the contract to deliver the Nintendo Gamecube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
's Flipper graphics chip. It was acquired in February 2000 for $400 Million by ATI. It led to the greatly improved R300 graphics chip family. Wei later joined ATI's board of directors.
Wei Yen is the chairman and founder of AiLive
AiLive
AiLive Inc. is a software company based in Mountain View, California. The company was founded in 2000 by software programmer and developer Wei Yen. The company has worked closely with Nintendo on the development of motion-sensing hardware, tools and software for the Wii video game...
, the company partnered with Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
in developing software tools for programmers working with the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
controller and Wii MotionPlus
Wii MotionPlus
The is an expansion device for the Wii Remote video game controller for the Wii that allows it to more accurately capture complex motion. According to Nintendo, the sensor in the device supplements the accelerometer and Sensor Bar capabilities of the Wii Remote to enable actions to be rendered...
attachment.
He is also the founder of iGware, a company that offers cloud computer services to its customers. Its most important customer is Nintendo - almost all of the companies founded by Wei Yen seem to share Nintendo as their main customer. iGware's cloud services power the online services of the Nintendo DS, the Nintendo 3DS, the Nintendo Wii and soon the Nintendo Wii U. However, in July 2011, Acer, of which Wei Yen is a former board member, acquired the US-based iGware for 320 million US-$ and therefore, iGware will become a part of Acer's company structure and will continue to provide cloud services. In this context, iGware's US-team will collaborate with new teams in Taiwan and China. Furthermore, iGware will change its name to Acer Cloud Technology Co and will continue to be headed by Wei Yen.