Compaq exec goes to start-up
Former Compaq executive James Schraith plans to join ShareWave as the start-up company's president and chief executive officer.
ShareWave is developing technology that will enable PCs to act as an "information furnace" that fires up to control digital appliances and information by linking to a home PC.
"I had always aspired to work at a start-up sometime in my career," Schraith said. "It just came a little sooner in my career than I expected, but it [was an attractive proposition and] I didn't want to wait."
Bob Bennett, ShareWave's cofounder as well as its acting CEO and president, said the company was seeking an executive with stature, industry contacts, and experience in helping small PC-related companies grow into larger corporations.
Before his stint at Compaq, Schraith worked at information technology solutions provider AST. He started there when it was a relatively young company and left as its president and chief operating officer.
Discussions between ShareWave and Schraith began in November, but it wasn't until earlier this month that Schraith decided to leave Compaq, where he was vice president and general manager for North America.
"I share a vision with the [ShareWave] founders of where we see the digital home going in the future," Schraith said. "ShareWave sees a continued convergence of devices in the home that connect to share information--data or multimedia content."
ShareWave's technology is designed to distribute such information to a number of devices in the home. Schraith pointed out that, with the increasing presence of sub-$1,000 computers in homes, more and more consumers will have a need for such technology.
Schraith joins ShareWave just as it is emerging from 18 months of toiling in obscurity while it worked to launch its business. The company has raised $7.5 million in two rounds of financing, and already has enlisted Microsoft, Intel, and Vulcan Ventures as investors.
Schraith is jumping into the company at a time when its gearing up to roll out its first product--a new wireless-related technology that will be released in the company's third quarter. ShareWave expects to distribute its products through retail channels, with hopes of later partnering with electronics companies and PC makers that will embed its technology in their products.
[Intel and Vulcan are investors in CNET: The Computer Network#93;