Semyon Dukach
Encyclopedia
Semyon Dukach is the CEO of SMTP, Inc., (OTCBB: SMTP) and a former professional blackjack
player with the MIT Blackjack Team
. He played with Strategic Investments
and later was one of the founding members and team leaders on Amphibian Investments whose exploits were chronicled in Ben Mezrich
’s Busting Vegas and referred to in Mezrich’s Bringing Down the House
.
Dukach was the main character in Busting Vegas and the only member of the team to be referred to by his real name in either book. Born on the 25th of October 1968 in Moscow
, Dukach moved to the US in 1979. He completed a BS
in Computer Science at Columbia University
in New York in 1990 and a MS
in Computer Science at MIT
in Boston in 1993. While attending MIT, Dukach was trained as a player on the famous MIT Blackjack team whose exploits have been chronicled in the Hollywood movie 21
. Starting out with Strategic Investments (SI) in 1992, Dukach was a major player on the team and enjoyed great success in those early years. After the end of the SI, Dukach continued to play with a few other team members.
At the end of 1994, Dukach and a few players split off and formed a second, independent team. This new team was referred to as the Amphibians and the team that they left was referred to as the Reptiles.
The Amphibians focused more heavily on more advanced playing strategies like card sequencing and steering while the Reptiles focused most of their playing time on card counting
.
Since stopping play in the late 1990s, Dukach's involvement in blackjack has been limited, although he does offer seminars teaching the techniques that were used by the Amphibians to prospective players today at Blackjack Science.
He has also been involved in many other notable ventures outside of his blackjack career:
Dukach is the brother of Inna Dukach the opera singer married to Sean Altman, former front man of Rockapella
.
Blackjack
Blackjack, also known as Twenty-one or Vingt-et-un , is the most widely played casino banking game in the world...
player with the MIT Blackjack Team
MIT Blackjack Team
The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card-counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide...
. He played with Strategic Investments
MIT Blackjack Team
The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card-counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide...
and later was one of the founding members and team leaders on Amphibian Investments whose exploits were chronicled in Ben Mezrich
Ben Mezrich
Ben Mezrich is an American author from Princeton, New Jersey. He graduated magna-cum-laude with a degree in Social Studies from Harvard University in 1991. Some of his books have been written under the pseudonym Holden Scott. Mezrich attended Princeton Day School, in Princeton, New Jersey...
’s Busting Vegas and referred to in Mezrich’s Bringing Down the House
Bringing Down the House (book)
Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions is a book by Ben Mezrich about a group of MIT card counters commonly known as the MIT Blackjack Team. While represented as non-fiction by Mezrich and Free Press, the book contains significant fictional elements...
.
Dukach was the main character in Busting Vegas and the only member of the team to be referred to by his real name in either book. Born on the 25th of October 1968 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Dukach moved to the US in 1979. He completed a BS
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in Computer Science at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in New York in 1990 and a MS
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
in Computer Science at MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in Boston in 1993. While attending MIT, Dukach was trained as a player on the famous MIT Blackjack team whose exploits have been chronicled in the Hollywood movie 21
21 (2008 film)
21 is a 2008 drama film directed by Australian director Robert Luketic and stars Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Bosworth, Liza Lapira, Jacob Pitts, and Aaron Yoo. The film is inspired by the true story of the MIT Blackjack Team as told in Bringing Down the House, the...
. Starting out with Strategic Investments (SI) in 1992, Dukach was a major player on the team and enjoyed great success in those early years. After the end of the SI, Dukach continued to play with a few other team members.
At the end of 1994, Dukach and a few players split off and formed a second, independent team. This new team was referred to as the Amphibians and the team that they left was referred to as the Reptiles.
The Amphibians focused more heavily on more advanced playing strategies like card sequencing and steering while the Reptiles focused most of their playing time on card counting
Card counting
Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino games to determine whether the next hand is likely to give a probable advantage to the player or to the dealer. Card counters, also known as advantage players, attempt to decrease the inherent casino house...
.
Since stopping play in the late 1990s, Dukach's involvement in blackjack has been limited, although he does offer seminars teaching the techniques that were used by the Amphibians to prospective players today at Blackjack Science.
He has also been involved in many other notable ventures outside of his blackjack career:
- Authored work on virtual reality at IBM Research in 1988
- Authored a 1992 e-commerce paper on SNPP: A Simple Network Payment Protocol
- Founded Fast Engines in '97, sold in 2000
- Co-founded Vert in 1998
- Lead investor and interim CEO of AccuRev in 2001
- Chairman and CEO of SMTP, Inc.
- Co-founded PDFFiller
- Was a CEO mentor at the Cambridge Business Development Center
- Founded StartupHive.org
- Investor and board member of TerrafugiaTerrafugiaTerrafugia is a small, privately held American corporation that is developing a roadable aircraft dubbed the Transition. Their General Aviation , Light-Sport Aircraft is designed to fold its wings, enabling the vehicle to also operate as a street-legal road vehicle, and is scheduled for...
Dukach is the brother of Inna Dukach the opera singer married to Sean Altman, former front man of Rockapella
Rockapella
Rockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. Their name is derived from the words "rock" and "a cappella". They sing original vocal music and a cappella covers of pop and rock songs; over time, their sound has evolved from high-energy pop and world music...
.