Product ready (Beta) prototypes are expected to be completed by the end of Q4.

I would assume that companies who have requested product ready prototypes will have been satisfied with the engineering samples (the Alpha prototypes) which were expected to be delivered in the first half. The production ready prototypes require co-ordination with customer electronics or electronics suppliers as pointed out by David Lazovsky at the AGM.

There are module manufacturers that currently buy the optical engines and currently source the electronics for those optics: drivers, transimpedance amplifiers, etc. So we are engaged with those electronics providers, ensuring that we understand the performance requirements of their electronics and are compatible with our optics including some of the data that I believe Suresh has shown around the PIN receiver technology. And the customers that we’re engaged with, including the large Chinese customers that Suresh reviewed today, have specified specific electronics providers that they would like us to work with and we are working with those electronic providers in many cases to ensure compatibility of our optical engines with the existing electronics that they’re currently using.

So that activity of specific design requirements needed to build the production ready prototypes had occurred or was occurring at the time of the AGM. One would assume that the ramp up of engineering staff has been required to meet both existing needs to build product ready prototypes and future requirements to fulfill orders generated from those customers who are satisfied with the results.  

What we should see addressed very specifically is how the ramping up of engineering staff is being supported. Given the comments from Suresh that customers are eager to have lower cost, high performance transceivers available utilizing the POET optical engine my guess is that there is a financial commitment being made by these customers based on the progress that they have seen to date. What form would this take?

Alternatively POET goes to the market and hopes for the best?

I think they are far enough along that this would not be required especially with the comments by TM that have been made regarding the $25 million in warrants that could be exercised given the right news.