Leadership Team

Sameer joined MIPS as CEO in September 2023. He previously spent 18 years at Texas Instruments (TI), most recently as Vice President, BU Manager, Processors, where he was responsible for the company’s processors and high-performance microcontroller (MCU) businesses. In that role, Wasson re-established TI as a mainstream microprocessor (MPU) and MCU supplier for high-growth automotive and industrial markets. He also established the company’s footprint in embedded AI, software defined vehicles, and electrification. Prior to that, Sameer was General Manager for TI’s Radar/mmWave Business Unit, responsible for establishing TI’s mmWave CMOS radar business focused on automotive and expanding into industrial markets. Before that, Sameer was General Manager, Communications Infrastructure Processors at TI. He holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics from Pune University.

Sameer joined MIPS as CEO in September 2023. He previously spent 18 years at Texas Instruments (TI), most recently as Vice President, BU Manager, Processors, where he was responsible for the company’s processors and high-performance microcontroller (MCU) businesses. In that role, Wasson re-established TI as a mainstream microprocessor (MPU) and MCU supplier for high-growth automotive and industrial markets. He also established the company’s footprint in embedded AI, software defined vehicles, and electrification. Prior to that, Sameer was General Manager for TI’s Radar/mmWave Business Unit, responsible for establishing TI’s mmWave CMOS radar business focused on automotive and expanding into industrial markets. Before that, Sameer was General Manager, Communications Infrastructure Processors at TI. He holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics from Pune University.

Mustafiz joined MIPS as CTO in 2021. He was previously COO of the SK Hynix office in Silicon Valley and before that worked as a founder and/or executive at multiple startups including Silicon Spice and SandForce, and also held management positions at Broadcom and LSI Corp. He gained experience in venture capital investing and portfolio company management while at SKTA CVC and its accelerator. Mustafiz began his career with Intel where he was involved in designing the i486 and Pentium processors and led/co-led development of flagship products such the Pentium OverDrive, Pentium-II and Merced (IA-64) processors. Mustafiz has BS and MS degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering and is a member of the IEEE and the IEEE Computer and Communication Societies. He holds more than a dozen patents in the areas of high-performance processor design, cache and bus protocols, and digital signal processing. Mustafiz is actively involved with non-profits that provide economically marginalized children with access to quality education.

Ashok has over 25 years of experience in various engineering development and leadership roles. In his most recent role, he was the General Manager at Analog Devices, where he led a worldwide engineering and marketing team to develop a large portfolio of DSP processors based on their proprietary cores as well as mixed-signal audio connectivity products for automotive, consumer, healthcare, and industrial customers. Prior to Analog Devices, Ashok worked in various processor and product development roles at National Semiconductor, Cirrus Logic, and Ross Technology. He holds MS and PhD degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

Don Smith joined MIPS as VP of Engineering in 2021. He was previously Senior Director of Engineering for Wave Computing and before that was a leader in building a RISC-V CPU engineering team for Bitmain. Prior to that, Don spent 14 years leading engineering teams at Cypress Semiconductor where was most recently Vice President of Design Verification. Before that, he was Director of Logic and Verification for Transmeta and Director of Engineering for MIPS processor developer Sandcraft. He has also held engineering management positions with Pyramid Technology and Unisys. Don holds a BS EECS from the University of California, Berkeley.

Itai Yarom leads MIPS’ marketing, sales and technical support activities, as well as strategic automotive activities. Itai has a rich AI background and vast experience in the semiconductor industry, including former tenures in both Intel and Synopsys. Before joining MIPS, Itai was the technical manager of Imagination Israel, supporting all of Imagination's IP solutions including MIPS CPUs. Itai has an MSc in computer science, with a focus on AI, machine learning and multi-agent systems. Itai has been involved with research activities and held advisory roles with major universities. Itai has developed over 20 silicon products, written more than 20 papers and holds several patents.

Rosario Angeles has over 25 years of diverse experience in all facets of startup, corporate finance, management consulting, and operational advisory services. Prior to joining the company, Rosario held positions as finance officer of public and private companies in the telecommunications, information management, real estate development, and service industries. She is a graduate of the College of the Holy Spirit with a BS in Accountancy.

Sanjai Kohli is recognized as the father of commercial GPS for his fundamental technology contributions to GPS and wireless communications. He was CEO of Wave Computing until June 2021, leading the successful turnaround/restructuring effort of MIPS and its pivot RISC-V. Prior to Wave, he was responsible for technology development of the Facebook Terragraph urban connectivity network, via acquisition of his company Inovi. He was previously Founder and CTO at SiRF, the company that created the commercial GPS market, from 1995 until March 2008. He also founded and successfully ran two other technology companies – WirelessHome and TrueSpan. Sanjai was awarded the European Inventor Award for making GPS a commercial product, and he holds 60 U.S. patents in GPS and communication technology. He is a graduate and distinguished alumnus of both the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Washington University in St. Louis. He is also an IEEE Fellow.

Desi is the Chairman of the Board. He was previously also Interim CEO. Prior to assuming the CEO role, Desi led the acquisition process of MIPS from Imagination in 2017. He has a broad range of experience in early stage technology startups both as an entrepreneur and investor as one of the founding partners in Tallwood Venture Capital. Desi holds a BS an MS in Materials Science and Engineering from UC Berkeley.

Sameer joined MIPS as CEO in September 2023. He previously spent 18 years at Texas Instruments (TI), most recently as Vice President, BU Manager, Processors, where he was responsible for the company’s processors and high-performance microcontroller (MCU) businesses. In that role, Wasson re-established TI as a mainstream microprocessor (MPU) and MCU supplier for high-growth automotive and industrial markets. He also established the company’s footprint in embedded AI, software defined vehicles, and electrification. Prior to that, Sameer was General Manager for TI’s Radar/mmWave Business Unit, responsible for establishing TI’s mmWave CMOS radar business focused on automotive and expanding into industrial markets. Before that, Sameer was General Manager, Communications Infrastructure Processors at TI. He holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics from Pune University.

Sameer joined MIPS as CEO in September 2023. He previously spent 18 years at Texas Instruments (TI), most recently as Vice President, BU Manager, Processors, where he was responsible for the company’s processors and high-performance microcontroller (MCU) businesses. In that role, Wasson re-established TI as a mainstream microprocessor (MPU) and MCU supplier for high-growth automotive and industrial markets. He also established the company’s footprint in embedded AI, software defined vehicles, and electrification. Prior to that, Sameer was General Manager for TI’s Radar/mmWave Business Unit, responsible for establishing TI’s mmWave CMOS radar business focused on automotive and expanding into industrial markets. Before that, Sameer was General Manager, Communications Infrastructure Processors at TI. He holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics from Pune University.

Mustafiz joined MIPS as CTO in 2021. He was previously COO of the SK Hynix office in Silicon Valley and before that worked as a founder and/or executive at multiple startups including Silicon Spice and SandForce, and also held management positions at Broadcom and LSI Corp. He gained experience in venture capital investing and portfolio company management while at SKTA CVC and its accelerator. Mustafiz began his career with Intel where he was involved in designing the i486 and Pentium processors and led/co-led development of flagship products such the Pentium OverDrive, Pentium-II and Merced (IA-64) processors. Mustafiz has BS and MS degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering and is a member of the IEEE and the IEEE Computer and Communication Societies. He holds more than a dozen patents in the areas of high-performance processor design, cache and bus protocols, and digital signal processing. Mustafiz is actively involved with non-profits that provide economically marginalized children with access to quality education.

Ashok has over 25 years of experience in various engineering development and leadership roles. In his most recent role, he was the General Manager at Analog Devices, where he led a worldwide engineering and marketing team to develop a large portfolio of DSP processors based on their proprietary cores as well as mixed-signal audio connectivity products for automotive, consumer, healthcare, and industrial customers. Prior to Analog Devices, Ashok worked in various processor and product development roles at National Semiconductor, Cirrus Logic, and Ross Technology. He holds MS and PhD degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

Don Smith joined MIPS as VP of Engineering in 2021. He was previously Senior Director of Engineering for Wave Computing and before that was a leader in building a RISC-V CPU engineering team for Bitmain. Prior to that, Don spent 14 years leading engineering teams at Cypress Semiconductor where was most recently Vice President of Design Verification. Before that, he was Director of Logic and Verification for Transmeta and Director of Engineering for MIPS processor developer Sandcraft. He has also held engineering management positions with Pyramid Technology and Unisys. Don holds a BS EECS from the University of California, Berkeley.

Itai Yarom leads MIPS’ marketing, sales and technical support activities, as well as strategic automotive activities. Itai has a rich AI background and vast experience in the semiconductor industry, including former tenures in both Intel and Synopsys. Before joining MIPS, Itai was the technical manager of Imagination Israel, supporting all of Imagination's IP solutions including MIPS CPUs. Itai has an MSc in computer science, with a focus on AI, machine learning and multi-agent systems. Itai has been involved with research activities and held advisory roles with major universities. Itai has developed over 20 silicon products, written more than 20 papers and holds several patents.

Rosario Angeles has over 25 years of diverse experience in all facets of startup, corporate finance, management consulting, and operational advisory services. Prior to joining the company, Rosario held positions as finance officer of public and private companies in the telecommunications, information management, real estate development, and service industries. She is a graduate of the College of the Holy Spirit with a BS in Accountancy.

Sanjai Kohli is recognized as the father of commercial GPS for his fundamental technology contributions to GPS and wireless communications. He was CEO of Wave Computing until June 2021, leading the successful turnaround/restructuring effort of MIPS and its pivot RISC-V. Prior to Wave, he was responsible for technology development of the Facebook Terragraph urban connectivity network, via acquisition of his company Inovi. He was previously Founder and CTO at SiRF, the company that created the commercial GPS market, from 1995 until March 2008. He also founded and successfully ran two other technology companies – WirelessHome and TrueSpan. Sanjai was awarded the European Inventor Award for making GPS a commercial product, and he holds 60 U.S. patents in GPS and communication technology. He is a graduate and distinguished alumnus of both the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Washington University in St. Louis. He is also an IEEE Fellow.

Desi is the Chairman of the Board. He was previously also Interim CEO. Prior to assuming the CEO role, Desi led the acquisition process of MIPS from Imagination in 2017. He has a broad range of experience in early stage technology startups both as an entrepreneur and investor as one of the founding partners in Tallwood Venture Capital. Desi holds a BS an MS in Materials Science and Engineering from UC Berkeley.