Kit Rodgers, Ben Jun, and Paul Kocher (Cryptography Research, Inc.) [Entire Talk]

Why It Matters

CRI’s breakthroughs in side‑channel security and SSL standards secured the modern internet and hardware ecosystem, demonstrating the lasting value of university‑born collaborations.

Key Takeaways

• Founders leveraged Stanford connections to launch Cryptography Research in 1990s.
• Discovered differential power analysis, reshaping hardware security worldwide.
• Co-authored SSL 3.0/TLS 1.0, enabling secure internet commerce.
• Rambus acquisition in 2011 valued company at $342 million.
• Mayfield Fellows network fostered lifelong collaborations and subsequent startups.

Summary

The Stanford Technology Ventures talk reunited three alumni—Paul Kocher, Ben Jun, and Kit Rogers—who founded Cryptography Research (CRI) in the late 1990s. Their shared Stanford experiences, Mayfield Fellows program, and early crypto seminars forged a partnership that blended deep technical talent with entrepreneurial drive.

At CRI they pioneered side‑channel attacks, most famously differential power analysis (DPA), demonstrating that power consumption could reveal cryptographic keys. Kocher’s work on timing attacks and his co‑authorship of SSL 3.0/TLS 1.0 laid the foundation for modern secure web transactions. The team also built secure smart‑card architectures that now protect billions of chips, and they consulted on early digital‑content protection for Audible.

Memorable anecdotes—Kocher breaking cards while making pasta, Jun’s desperate phone call to a young Stanford grad, and Rogers’ interview that began with “I’m not sure how to interview you”—illustrate the informal, trust‑based culture that propelled the startup. Their story underscores how personal networks and interdisciplinary curiosity turned academic puzzles into commercial breakthroughs.

The legacy of CRI extends beyond its $342 million acquisition by Rambus in 2011. Their innovations continue to underpin global hardware security, and the alumni’s subsequent ventures—ranging from fintech studios to live‑streaming platforms—show how early collaboration can seed multiple high‑impact companies.

Original Description

Stanford alumni Kit Rodgers, Paul Kocher, and Ben Jun co-founded Cryptography Research, Inc. (CRI), where they built and deployed some of the world’s most impactful security technologies. CRI was acquired by Rambus in 2011 for $342 million. Kocher is a cryptography and data security researcher best known as a co-author of the SSL 3.0/TLS 1.0 protocols. Jun is an engineer who most recently served as the vice president of livestream and video at Diamond Kinetics, which acquired his company sidelineHD, a livestreaming platform for sports. Rodgers is the senior vice president of technology partnerships and corporate development at Rambus. In this conversation, Kocher, Jun, and Rodgers discuss how CRI’s business model evolved and how they built their uncommon level of trust in each other throughout the process.

Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders is produced by the Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP), the entrepreneurship center at the Stanford School of Engineering, and published on eCorner by STVP. STVP empowers aspiring entrepreneurs to become global citizens who create and scale responsible innovations.

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