The interview covers the life and career of Donald Scifres beginning with his background and family; his undergraduate studies at Purdue University; his Ph.D. work in Electrical Engineering at the University of Illinois under Nick Holonyak; his early career at the Xerox Parc Research Center in Palo Alto, California (1972-1983) where he worked on several types of semiconductor lasers. He became the founding president of Spectra Diode Laboratories (SDL) which was formed in 1983 as a joint venture between Xerox Corporation and the Spectra Physics Company, and became an independent company in 1992. SDL experienced major growth in the 1990s and early 2000s as a producer of WDM (wave length division multiplex) laser systems during the fiber optic telecom boom. He sold the company to JDS Uniphase in 2001 and worked there until 2003, when he left to establish SDL Ventures, a venture capital firm. Recollections of people include Nick Holonyak, Bill Streifer, Bill Burnham, and Gary Starkweather.