#719 – Inventing the Power MOSFET with Alex Lidow

#723 – BeagleBoard’s Back with Jason Kridner

[https://theamphour.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/723-JasonKridner-1024x1024.jpg] Welcome back, Jason Kridner! * Jason has previously been on the show * Episode 59 (!) [https://theamphour.com/the-amp-hour-59-bonafide-beagleboard-bionomics/] * Episode 378 alongside Robert Nelson [https://theamphour.com/378-an-interview-with-jason-kridner-and-robert-nelson/] * The BeagleY AI [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/beagley-ai] was the first board that mimic’ed the RPi form factor * PocketBeagle 2 [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/pocketbeagle-2] is still a small altoid tin form factor with a new processor * The Zepto is a new product targeting a $1 price point [http://linkedin.com/posts/elektor-international-media_the-beaglebadge-and-zepto-platform-shows-activity-7442616488496103425-P0-1] for microcontrollers * Many boards in the Beagle catalog now run Zephyr [https://www.zephyrproject.org/], and BeagleBoard.org recently joined The Zephyr Project as members and contributors * Click Brand is the official bards from MikroElectronika that implement the open source Mikrobus * Chris started using Mikrobus while designing early prototypes of the BeagleConnect Freedom [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/beagleconnect-freedom] * The Freedom board talks over wireless to boards like the BeaglePlay [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/beagleplay] * Application spaces for different boards * FPGA based board * Cheeseburger robot? Well yes, but also Cheeseburger robot [https://www.amazon.com/Tiydiygo-Deformable-Transformer-Hamburger-Educational/dp/B0B427SFTN] * Mitchells vs the machine [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mitchells_vs._the_Machines] * Krazam * Click boarfds now have eeprom / ClickID [https://www.mikroe.com/clickid?srsltid=AfmBOorGf502BxJbw30LgCi2K4acPuuAL3lODR70DD0ULvte44hxu1Jw] as a 1-wire identifier with a uuid * Beagleplay has 802.15.4 * Project ARA [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Ara] popularized the idea of Greybus [https://docs.beagleboard.org/boards/beagleconnect/freedom/demos-and-tutorials/using-greybus.html] * MotoMods [https://www.nklabs.com/moto-mods] from Motorola was another implementation that worked on the Moto Z [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moto_Z] * Using Freedom for prototyping * WebAssembly [https://webassembly.org/] * …on microcontrollers? * Jason says he doesn’t really like MCUboot [https://docs.mcuboot.com/] * Entering the linux ecosystem * bb-imager [https://github.com/beagleboard/bb-imager] * Techlab [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/techlab] is a way to easily extend peripherals for the PocketBeagle * Known working targets * Michael Welling designed the baconbits [https://www.beagleboard.org/projects/baconbits] mini cape as a learning platform * The BeagleBadge [https://www.beagleboard.org/blog/2026-03-09-introducing-beaglebadge-a-new-vision-for-open-source-wearables-and-iot] is a new formfactor shown in the title image for this episode. It runs on a new low cost TI part running Linux and yes… it runs Doom [https://www.elektormagazine.com/news/beaglebadge-zepto-doom] * The Badge can also talk on Meshtastic [https://meshtastic.org/] * Working with the memory shortage * Bao – Bunie and Xobs [https://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/2026/baochip-1x-a-mostly-open-22nm-soc-for-high-assurance-applications/] * Bella [https://www.beagleboard.org/projects/bela-low-latency-audio-sensor-cape-for-pocketbeagle] / Gem * Beagle5fire [https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/beaglev-fire] * RISC V boards * RV32 Claire * Find Beagle and Jason online * Schedule a meeting with Jason [https://calendly.com/jkridner] * There is also a Discord [https://www.beagleboard.org/blog/2023-07-31-beagleboard-now-has-an-official-discord-chat-group] * And a Zulip instance [https://zulip.openbeagle.org/] * You can get Beagle merch [https://merch.beagleboard.org/]

#722 – AI Tooling with Matt Liberty and Luke Beno

[https://theamphour.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/722-AI-1024x1024.jpg] Welcome back Matt Liberty (Joulescope) and Luke Beno (Werewolf.us) * Matt has been a guest on episodes 527 [https://theamphour.com/527-measuring-current-with-matt-liberty/] and 607 [https://theamphour.com/607-the-joulescope-upgrade-with-matt-liberty/] * Luke was a guest on episode 272 [https://theamphour.com/272-an-interview-with-luke-beno-of-analog-io/] * Luke launched a new cable manufacturing and power supply company in the US called Werewolf.us [https://werewolf.us/] * Matt is working on the JS320 * We discussed how PartsBox is a great ERP solution but Matt and Luke decided to go fully custom with Claude Code. Jan Rychter was a guest on episode 542 [https://theamphour.com/542-component-management-with-jan-rychter/] * We discussed the differences with Product Lifecycle Maintenance. Michael Corr of the recently acquired Duro Labs was on episode 577 [https://theamphour.com/577-product-lifecycle-management-with-michael-corr/] * CAM workflow * A fully verticalized PCB factory is something Jonathan Hirschmann talked about on episode 299 [https://theamphour.com/299-an-interview-with-jonathan-hirschman-of-pcbng/] * Jeff Bezos is investing 100B [https://finance.yahoo.com/sectors/technology/articles/jeff-bezos-readies-100b-investment-203917690.html] in a fund that is looking at automation in the factory using AI * Matt recently had success with Claude Code and verilog programming * Saleae for hardware in the loop using their APIs * Other tools to check out * pyelf * pdfdk blast * superpowers skill (by past guest at Teardown Jesse Vincent [https://theamphour.com/450-stories-from-teardown-2019/]) * Luke used OpenClaw to power a chat agent in his ERP system * Working with distributors * TI backlog * Chris recently learned that Digikey has a developer API * Cocotb verification framework (in Python) [https://www.cocotb.org/] * Luke is working on vision experiments for inhouse developed AOI solutions

#721 – Chip Design for Fun (and Waffles) with Julia Desmazes

[https://theamphour.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/721-JuliaDesmazes.png] Welcome Julia Desmazes of Tales on The Wire [https://talesonthewire.com] * Follow along with the blog post we discuss Two Weeks Until Tapeout [https://talesonthewire.com/projects/two_weeks_until_tapeout/] * Matt Venn – TinyTapeout [https://tinytapeout.com/] – Episode 616 [https://theamphour.com/616-open-source-tapeout-with-matthew-venn/] and 672 [https://theamphour.com/672-silicon-revolution-with-matt-venn/] * Andreas Olofsson – openroad/openlane [https://theamphour.com/650-accessible-asics-with-andreas-olofsson/] – Episode 254 [https://theamphour.com/254-an-interview-with-andreas-olofsson-adaptevas-ampliative-abacus/] and 650 [https://theamphour.com/650-accessible-asics-with-andreas-olofsson/] * Tim Ansell – Wafer.space [https://wafer.space] – Episode 375 [https://theamphour.com/375-an-interview-with-tim-mithro-ansell/], 501 [https://theamphour.com/501-discussing-the-open-source-pdk-with-tim-ansell/], and 703 [https://theamphour.com/703-building-wafer-space-with-tim-ansell/] * JTAG [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JTAG] * How do you know that tooling is or isn’t working? * Accelerator [https://talesonthewire.com/projects/blake2s_hashing_accelerator_a_solo_tapeout_journey/] * Rabbithole with floating point (post updated after recording [https://talesonthewire.com/projects/floating_dragon/]) * BFloat16 [https://github.com/Essenceia/BFloat16] * Follow Julia on GitHubhttps://github.com/Essenceia [https://github.com/Essenceia/BFloat16] * Kapla (official website [https://www.kapla.com/en/architecture-in-versailles_i39.html], not the much cheaper alibaba version): * Dimity Grinberg [https://dmitry.gr/?r=05.Projects] personal blog

#720 – Hyper Growth and OpenClaw Interns

[https://theamphour.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/720.png] * Canonical (the makers of Ubuntu) acquired Golioth [https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7434631348432039936], meaning Chris is moving from a 12-person startup to an organization of over 1,200 people * Dave found this chart of Canonical products on wikipedia to be useful [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canonical_(company)#/media/File:Canonical_-_Ecosystem_-_Mind_Map_-_v20231018.png] * An increase in professional travel from zero weeks to six weeks per year following the acquisition, including “sprints” in cities like London * The naming convention for Ubuntu releases (Year.Month) and the importance of Long Term Support (LTS) versions for backporting security vulnerabilities * Ubuntu Core’s role in embedded Linux devices, utilizing an immutable kernel and “snaps” for field update * Dave believes he influenced the Emergency Situation Surcharge at DHL after asking why it is still happening * Dave’s transition to a “Hipster Dave” persona, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rmhu0Yvba2Y] complete with a secondhand Mac and a goatee * The implementation of OpenClaw [https://openclaw.ai/], a scripting service that interfaces with LLMs to act as an “automated intern” for repetitive administrative tasks * Chris really likes this video showing how to use OpenClaw [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzWI3Dil9Ig] * Using OpenClaw to automate forum registration approvals to combat high volumes of bot activity * The security implications of AI agents, emphasizing that they should be treated like interns with limited access to sensitive data and separate accounts * ARM released its first physical server chip [https://newsroom.arm.com/news/arm-agi-cpu-launch], measuring approximately 70mm, marking a shift from a pure IP company to a hardware competitor. * The Super Micro CEO smuggling scandal [https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/24/arm-stock-pops-haas-chip-cpu.html], where the founder was accused of smuggling $2.5 billion worth of Nvidia chips. * The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber_Resilience_Act] and its requirement for nearly all CE-marked electronic products to be updatable by December 2027. * Potential impacts of the CRA on one-time programmable (OTP) devices and the necessity of maintaining firmware support for five years post-product life. * SpaceX’s plans for a “Terafab” [https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/semiconductors/analyzing-elon-musks-terafab-a-step-towards-tesla-and-spacexs-partial-vertical-integration-or-an-unattainable-dream] a manufacturing facility ten times larger than a Gigafactory designed to verticalize the entire supply chain from silicon wafers to final packaging. * Editor’s note: despite cool tech stuff happening, Elon is…so lame. * NASA’s cancellation of the Lunar Gateway project [https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/24/nasa-to-spend-20-billion-on-moon-base-cancel-orbiting-lunar-station.html] in favor of a direct path to establishing a moon base within the next five to seven years. * Pop culture recommendations including the series For All Mankind [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_All_Mankind_(TV_series)] and The Expanse, along with the book Delta V. [https://www.amazon.com/Delta-v-Daniel-Suarez/dp/1524742414]

#719 – Inventing the Power MOSFET with Alex Lidow

[https://theamphour.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/AlexLidow-300x300.png] Alex is founder and CEO of Efficient Power Conversion, a leading manufacturer of GaN MOSFET’s. Alex is also the inventor of the original Power MOSFET and HEXFET at International Rectifier. Also, former CEO of International Rectifier (founded by his father!), https://epc-co.com We cover everything from inventing the power MOSFET on his first day on the job to silicon physics, AI data centres and humanoid robots. Enjoy.