Sam Heidari

Dr. Sam Heidari is a seasoned technology executive for both public and private companies.

Recently, he was the Chairman of the board and CEO of Quantenna Communications in which he drove the organization in developing the most advanced Wi-Fi hardware and software solutions to date – thereby enabling networking applications previously not thought possible. Dr. Heidari led Quantenna’s successful IPO in 2016 and its subsequent acquisition in 2019.

Prior to Quantenna, he served as chief technology officer at Ikanos Communications Inc. He joined Ikanos as one of the original team members and provided meaningful contributions to its IPO. Then, Dr. Heidari rejoined Ikanos in 2006 via the acquisition of Doradus Technologies Inc., where he had served as president and CEO. Dr. Heidari serves on the Global Semiconductor Alliance Board of Directors and has served on the advisory board for both Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Departments at the University of Southern California. He is a senior member of IEEE and holds more than 46 U.S. and international patents.

Dr. Heidari was named the 2014 Executive of the Year by the Golden Bridge Awards and the 2017 Executive of the Year by UBM. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Southern California, and a bachelor’s degree in science from Northeastern University, all in Electrical Engineering.