Eon Labs | Boast FY23 kick off and Technical

Source: Notion | Last edited: 2023-11-21 | ID: 7d52c609-8eb...

Video

Team Member-Specific Actions & Responsbilities

TERRY consolidates EON’s all team members’ info and share them to BOAST.
TERRY prepares his own JIRA tasks, to substantiate R&D activities for the claim process.
CHEN upload all fiscal year 2023 invoice documentation, with full details of contractors like Ron, and team members who shifted employment status, such as Victor.
CHEN prepares info for Ron, and Ian.
MAY will have technical interview with BOAST.
JAMES will have technical interview with BOAST.
VICTOR will have technical interview with BOAST.
BOAST Prepares and send a list of detailed project documents for follow-up interviews.
BOAST ensures all necessary financial documents are compiled, especially for team members with status changes or international work contributions like Chen Li.
BOAST works with accountant Brandy of MNP to establish a clear timeline for the creation of technical and financial reports.

Actionable Items for SR&ED Claim Preparation

Documentation and Reporting Improvements:

Enhance documentation practices at Eon Labs, ensuring detailed activity timelines for team members that support SR&ED claims.
Review and adjust project management tools and tagging strategies at Boast.AI to facilitate better identification of SR&ED-eligible activities.

Claim Process Coordination and Timeline Setting:

Conduct technical interviews with Eon Labs leads and prepare team members like May, James, and Terry for these with a focus on their specific technical contributions.
Coordinate the first technical interview to establish a 10-12 week delivery timeline for the SR&ED claim.
Align project-specific details and insights with financial and technical reporting, including confirmation of start dates for projects like the commodity futures model training.

Audit Preparedness and CRA Compliance:

Prepare Eon Labs and Boast.AI for potential CRA audits by leveraging robust data collection and storage features.
Record changes in residency status of team members such as Chen and Wei and assess implications for expense claims.
Enlist assistance from BOAST Audit Shield for potential audit defense, documenting evidence for claims.

Financial and Technical Report Integration:

Review, approve, and integrate technical and financial reports on the BOAST platform, ensuring compliance with SR&ED requirements.
Create tax schedules in cooperation with accountants after report approval.

R&D Activities and Technical Enhancements:

Monitor the progress of R&D initiatives like the close ratio strategy and the momentum transformer model, considering improvements and backtesting results.
Facilitate software engineering for the integration with platforms such as TradeStation and assess the impact of partnerships, like with market maker teams, on trade volume and fees.
Review and confirm the functional compliance of new pipelines for resampling and prediction services with current operational needs.

Initial Pleasantries and Location Check

00:00 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 👋 Terry and the representatives from Boast.AI are in their office, using a separate phone booth for the call.
00:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📍 They discuss working from WeWorks and the emptiness of the offices, particularly on Fridays.

SR&ED Claims Preparation and Proactiveness

03:16 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⏱ Chen Li acknowledges the benefits of starting the SR&ED claims process early to avoid end-of-year rush.
03:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📊 Terry is informed about the consistent process for CRA claims and a higher rate of audits.

Workflow and Tool Integration

04:40 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💻 Chen Li mentions difficulties with integrating time tracking and the mental effort required, leading to underutilization of this feature in their workflow.
05:08 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛠 Chen believes discussing this early can help retroactively organize data.

Project Management and Tagging

05:36 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🏷️ Eon Labs uses JIRA and GitHub with Epics, but not many story tags.
06:32 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔍 For machine learning and experiments, they have some tagging to categorize work.

Fiscal Year Confirmation and Claim Timeline

07:00 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📅 Terry confirms the fiscal year-end date as December 31st.
07:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⏳ The claim delivery timeline is discussed, with an expectation of 10 to 12 weeks post the initial technical interview.

Claim Preparation and Timeline

08:24 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⌛ The claim delivery timeline is estimated at 10 to 12 weeks from the technical interview.
10:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📅 Eon Labs’ fiscal year-end is confirmed as December 31st, 2023, and the next steps for the SR&ED claims are discussed.

Staffing and Contractor Changes

08:52 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 👥 Eon Labs experienced staff changes; hiring two people, subsequently letting them go, and currently working with a new contractor.
09:20 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📑 Contractor Ron’s invoices are tracked and will be reviewed for the claim.

Government Grants and Subsidies Inquiry

09:48 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💰 No government or grant subsidies received by Eon Labs in 2023.

Technical Interviews and Employee Status

10:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 👩‍💼 Lulu is set to conduct technical interviews with employees who have been involved in past claims.
11:12 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛠 Victor, a co-founder who has recently become a salaried employee, might contribute technically to the claim.

Ownership and Eligibility for Claims

12:08 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📊 Victor’s share of ownership is less than 10%, not affecting his inclusion in the claim.
12:36 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🗂 Chen’s shareholding remains constant and over 10%, which is noted for the claim.

System Integrations and Record Keeping

13:04 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💳 QuickBooks and WagePoint systems are used but with limited access; record keeping is discussed for accuracy in claims.
14:00 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🧾 Contractor invoicing details are discussed, along with how they are stored and can be provided for the claim.

Financial Procedures and Planning

14:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📈 Terry is advised on uploading invoice information for fiscal year 2023.
15:24 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💼 Coordination with accountants for the preparation of T2 and ensuring the technical and financial reports are delivered ahead of their timeline.

Communication and Coordination with Accountants

16:20 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ☎️ Direct communication with the accountant is established to facilitate the claim process and avoid delays.

Financial Support Options

16:48 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💡 Eon Labs informed about Quick Fund product again, for potential cash flow related to the SR&ED claim.
17:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💼 Discussion about the turnaround time of one to two weeks for accessing Quick Fund money after applying.

Audit Assurance Service

18:12 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛡️ Introduction of Bose Audit Shield service where Lulu will assist Eon Labs during any CRA audits to defend their claims.

Process Clarification and Bookkeeping

18:40 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📚 Inquiry about the residency status of Chen and Wei for correct claiming of expenses for 2023.
19:08 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📅 Confirmation that Eon Labs will claim 100% of eligible expenses after returning to Canada in May 2023.

Project Overview and Planning

19:36 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔍 An overview of Eon Labs’ 2023 projects, focusing on improving models and exploring new trading vehicles.
20:04 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📈 Mention of targeting commodity futures market including oil and wheat.

Technical Developments

20:32 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💻 Detailing work on the Eon Predictor model along with the adjustment from a 12-hour to a 1-hour predictive interval.
21:58 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🤖 Mei’s involvement in training models for commodity futures and the need to test models in real trading conditions.

New Market Strategies

22:26 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🆕 Introduction of commodity futures in 2023 as a new venture for Eon Labs.
23:22 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💹 Explaining the shift of focus to traditional markets due to interest from US investors.

Comparative Data Testing

26:10 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🌐 Insights into the application of models beyond crypto markets and successful preliminary results on traditional markets.
26:40 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🗣️ Response to questions about the applicability of Eon Labs’ models to traditional trading markets.

Project Timelines and Execution

27:06 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⏰ Chen recalls that significant project work began around May or June.
27:34 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 👨‍💻 James focused on building simulated exchanges during the first half of the year.
28:02 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔄 Simulated exchanges were developed to backtest execution strategies more efficiently.
28:58 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🎮 James worked on utilizing a simulated exchange to improve execution strategies.
29:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📈 James supported the inclusion of new crypto exchanges like OKEX and crypto.com due to increased trading volume.

Shift to Commodity Futures Trading

29:56 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛒 Eon Labs ventured into traditional markets, including adapting their model for commodity futures trading.
30:24 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📊 Terry sought the best data sources for market information, and James integrated with a platform TradeStation for trading executions.
31:20 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔢 They implemented a close ratio strategy to handle asset positions during various trading hours.

Evolving Market Strategies

32:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🏗️ There was a focus on developing software engineering solutions for the new trading platform.
33:40 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🚫 Chen highlighted that they ceased their market-making strategy and partnered with a market maker team instead.
35:04 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💼 The partnership helped to boost Eon Labs’ trading volumes and lower trading fees through the market maker.

Operational and Engineering Development

35:32 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⚙️ Ron spent the first half of the year on the Simulink Exchange and later on creating a pipeline to manage the lifecycle of services.
36:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔄 Ron streamlined the update and deployment process for services like resampling and prediction.
37:14 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🤖 Ron, with prior experience at Tableau, took the lead on the challenging creation of the Simulink Exchange.

Simulink Exchange Development

38:38 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔄 Ron created a simulated exchange while James utilized it to execute mock trades in an effort to optimize execution strategies.
39:06 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ⏱️ The team aimed for a super fast execution mechanism that couldn’t rely on traditional 10-second wait times of the Simulink Exchange.
39:58 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🤖 Ron, referred to as the contractor, was instrumental in the creation of the Simulink Exchange.

Personnel Changes and Role Clarification

40:26 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 💼 Ian Moore, a machine learning engineer, was hired and later let go, with May overseeing his work, which is not well-remembered by Chen.
41:22 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🧑‍💻 Discussion about another individual, Eric, and a developer named Zixing, who also left the company.
42:18 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛠️ Zixing was primarily responsible for transitioning services from JavaScript to TypeScript, enhancing server management using AWS Lambda, and experimenting with Airflow.
44:10 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔧 Current work involving technical debt in the serverless services area has been paused with no immediate plans to hire for that role.

Leadership and Strategy Oversight

44:38 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📝 Chen clarified a name confusion, stating that Eric Lam is his legal name which he rarely uses.
45:06 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🌟 Chen allocated time early in the year for a project called the momentum transformer, working with May to enhance predictions using a transformer model.
45:36 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📉 Despite the transformer model’s potential, it didn’t surpass existing models, leading to the decision to cease that line of work after two months of development.
46:32 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🧩 Chen primarily coordinated the team, namely May, James, and Ron, ensuring effective collaboration among them.

SR&ED Claims and Eligibility Discussions

47:28 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 👥 Lulu explained that direct support of technical work is eligible for SR&ED claims, with certain percentage limitations based on the employee’s situation.
48:24 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ✅ Keiferli Wong planned follow-up interviews to understand the specifics of the technical work for the SR&ED claim preparation.
48:52 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📚 Research time can be eligible for claims if it goes beyond due diligence, such as in cases of testing or prototype development.
49:20 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛠️ Victor’s role was clarified to include both development and research, indicating the potential to justify SR&ED claim time for him.

SR&ED Claim Details and Considerations

49:48 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📊 Eligible percentage of Victor’s work identified for SR&ED claim, including research phase activities supporting experimental development.
50:16 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🔍 Victor’s work detailed, focusing on commodity features, data sourcing, and testing various trading platforms like TradeStation, Interactive Broker, and Trading Technologies (TT).
50:44 [YouTube video - link unavailable] ✅ Confirmation that work directly supporting R&D is claimable; discussion on past non-claim due to no salary being paid.

Project Updates and R&D Focus

51:12 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📝 Inquiry about any additional unaddressed topics or relevant information for SR&ED claims.
51:40 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🧪 Terry’s work on R&D for third-party platforms, development of back-testing cases, and future machine learning features that fit into the AI system.
52:08 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🚀 Request for JIRA tasks and documentation of Terry’s work to support the time gauge for claim processing.

Next Steps and Communication

52:34 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 📅 Upcoming meetings planned with May and James; Keiferli Wong will send out meeting requests with preparatory questions.
53:02 [YouTube video - link unavailable] 🛠️ Positive conclusion to the meeting with anticipation for the upcoming SR&ED claim process and expressions of gratitude.