INTERVIEW with Casey Cavanaugh
FCP: For our readers who may not be familiar with your name, please remind us of your current position.
CC: I'm the founder and CEO of DaVinci Systems. Our campus is located here in Forrest City.
FCP: And what does Davinci Systems do?
CC: We specialize in making communications and data safe from criminals and hackers. We develop encryption tools and methods that companies and governments can use to protect information.
FCP: And you recently announced another project?
CC: Yes, we've hired some of the world's leading researchers in the field of artificial intelligence. They are part of a new department that will pursue the use of artificial intelligence in encryption and cryptography.
FCP: There was an article circulating online recently claiming that the artificial intelligence project is really aimed at cracking the codes of foreign governments and that your biggest customers are the National Security Agency and the CIA. Any comment?
CC: [Smiling] You shouldn't believe everything you read online.
FCP: Many people have described you as a true mathematics prodigy. Is that a fair characterization?
CC: I've always had a special ability when it comes to math. I'm generally able to see solutions to mathematical problems in unique ways that other people can't. I'm very visual when it comes to equations and constructs. I see mathematics in my mind in colors and shapes. It's not anything that I created — it's just how my brain works.
FCP: You're being modest. Isn't it true that you graduated from MIT with doctorate degrees in both number theory and fluid dynamics at age fifteen?
CC: Fourteen. I turned fifteen two months later.
FCP: And you published a breakthrough paper on abc theory? What is that exactly?
CC: It's difficult to describe in words. It has to do with integers and prime numbers, and letters that represent mathematical variables used in equations. My paper proposes what you might call a new language — a whole new universe of mathematical objects — in order to describe the known universe.
FCP: Did your parents know that you were a math genius when you were still very young?
CC: My mom likes to tell a story about a time when I was four and she found me writing out a rail fence cipher with a blue crayon. So yeah, I guess it started pretty early on.
FCP: What did you do after graduation?
CC: I took a year off and went back home to live with my parents. I continued my studies on my own and attended several conferences around the world to present my most well-known paper.
FCP: And after that?
CC: I went to work for the National Security Agency. The NSA saw some unique applications for my work that I hadn't yet considered. They couldn't figure out the math, but they were pretty confident that I could. So I spent a few years at the NSA. I can't really talk about it, but it was very productive.
FCP: And then you started DaVinci Systems.
CC: Right. With the help of some advisors and investors, DaVinci Systems hit the group running. I've been very fortunate. It's an exciting place to work and we're doing some very cutting edge research.
FCP: You don't look like the typical technology CEO.
CC: [Laughing] Well, for starters, I'm female. That's not very common in our industry. But I'm guessing you mean the hair, the tattoos and the flannel shirts. This is who I am. I'm young. I'm a free spirit. I don't feel the need to conform.
FCP: How did DaVinci Systems end up in Forrest City?
CC: From the beginning, we started doing some joint projects with Archon Genomics. It made sense to be in close proximity. And Forrest City is a very unique place. There's a lot going on here.
FCP: Do you have a favorite tattoo?
CC: All of my tattoos are meaningful to me. Each one has a special significance or a hidden meaning.
