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EP15: Optical networking, openness and disaggregation, IPoDWDM

In this episode, Mattias Fridström and Parthiban Kandappan, CTO at Infinera discuss the recent years’ significant changes in optical networking, the impact of Covid-19 on network design, openness and disaggregation in the telecom industry, and IPoDWDM.

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Mattias Fridström
Mattias Fridström
There’s a certain kind of person who gets a little bit too excited about networks. Mattias is that guy. If he had a tattoo, it would be of a network. Mattias holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wollongong, Australia. He joined Telia in 1996 and has worked in a number of senior roles at Telia Carrier (now Arelion), most recently as CTO. Since July 2016 he has been Arelion's Chief Evangelist. Mattias’ passion isn’t limited to networks: He has played golf professionally and competed on a high level in both football and floor hockey.
Parthiban Kandappan
Parthiban Kandappan
CTO at Infinera

Parthiban Kandappan is Chief Technology Officer at Infinera, a role he has held since October 2018. In this role, he oversees systems design and is responsible for technology vision and industry leadership in systems architecture.

Mr. Kandappan has nearly 30 years of computing and communications technology and management experience. Prior to assuming his current role, he served as Infinera’s Senior Vice President and Head of Architecture from 2013 to 2018. Mr. Kandappan was General Manager, Transport Business Unit at Applied Micro from 2011 to 2013, and before that, he held a variety of technology and leadership roles at Infinera over the course of nearly a decade, including Vice President, Advanced Systems Design and Vice President, Systems Engineering. Prior to this he held leadership roles including Vice President, Hardware Engineering at Zaffire Inc. (now Centerpoint); Switch Architect and was a founding member at Berkeley Networks (now Fore Systems) and various senior engineering roles at 3Com and Digital Equipment Corporation.

Mr. Kandappan holds a B.E. with Honors from University of Madras, India, and an M.S.E.E. from Virginia Tech, where he also completed part of the Ph.D. program. He has eleven issued patents, with others filed.

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