Rebirth of America, this is my era

Chapter 287 Qiao Wuyi

Since a bright future can be achieved quickly by taking shortcuts, it is inevitable to reach a cooperation agreement with Xerox. While Steve Jobs went back to sort out Apple's financial reports, Ethan did not stop and worked madly for a better tomorrow.

First of all, it was naturally to connect with Douglas Engelbart, Vinton Cerf's good friend and the founder of modern personal computers.After Jobs left, Ethan and Evelyn worked together to find each other's home based on the information given by the Stanford Research Institute.

Douglas Engelbart lived in Atherton, only two and a half miles from Palo Alto, and it took less than ten minutes to drive there. Perhaps because he ran fast, when Ethan arrived, the old man was enjoying dinner with his family.

Since Ethan was already a household name, his appearance caused everyone to exclaim. When the old man in his fifties learned that the sudden appearance of Ethan Jones and his friend's student Evelyn Johnson came for him, and what they wanted was the long-forgotten graphical user interface, he immediately and enthusiastically pulled the two into his home.

When he found out that they hadn't eaten yet, the old man took the initiative to invite them to the table and kept saying sorry.

"Oh Ethan, Evelyn, although this is our first meeting, I am actually familiar with both of you. I didn't know you would come over at this time, so the dinner preparations are very ordinary."

"I hope you don't mind."

"Oh - Doug - you are too polite -" Evelin smiled and waved her hand, saying: "We took the liberty of disturbing you first. If you don't mind, it is already the best welcome."

"Besides, we usually eat three meals a day in the cafeteria of Stanford Research Institute. We are all ordinary people, busy with life, so there is no such thing as rich or poor food."

"Okay, Okay, Okay..." Douglas nodded with a smile, his face full of relief.

"As long as you can accept it."

"Let's eat first."

"Is there anything we can talk about in the study later?"

"No problem." Ethan nodded with a smile.

After finishing the meal, the group went into the study.

As he sat down, Ethan also explained the reason for his visit.

When Douglas learned that the company that prompted the two to visit today was Xerox, he immediately guessed the specific situation. After Ethan and Evelyn expressed their interest in the graphical user interface and wanted to invest in his continued research, the old man rubbed his hands excitedly.

“Are you really willing to pay for my research?”

"Yes."

“I want to know, are you ready to bring it to market?”

"Of course, Apple will be responsible for this matter."

"Woz?"

"Yeah, you know him, right?"

"Yes, yes. Lockheed's research center and my research office are in the same park. Of course I know that little fat guy who likes to play pranks."

Speaking of Wozniak, Douglas smiled. "He's great. He made personal computers really accessible to people, which is something many people want to do but can't do."

As if he felt that his words were ambiguous, the old man quickly added another sentence.

"Of course, you guys are awesome too."

"You have tried every possible way to promote personal computers, constantly telling people what computers can do and what they can bring to the public. I really admire you."

"So if you want to promote the GUI, I'm definitely open to it, but..."

"How do you solve the problem at Xerox?"

"After all, they were the ones who found you first."

Douglas got to the point.

Ethan came here today mainly to test Douglas's attitude.

While embracing Douglas and Xerox at the same time would allow him to have it all, people are complicated.

Everyone has a different personality, different thinking, and different values. If Douglas has a deep grudge against Xerox and just doesn't want to cooperate with them, no one can force him to do so.

Not only that, forcing it may also damage the relationship between the two parties.

and so……

Ethan decided to tell the truth, "Doug, Xerox's products are good and we need them. At the same time, your technology and ideas are also an indispensable part of the graphical user interface."

Douglas laughed at the words of the water balance master, "Okay, okay, I understand."

He nodded slightly and said, "It seems that Xerox has done a good job."

"In that case, you should cooperate."

"You mean..." Ethan wanted to get an accurate answer.

"Your cooperation with Xerox should be conducted through Apple, right?" Perhaps because both parties knew each other well, Douglas did not hide anything and said directly: "I don't want to meet with those guys, but I want to get research funding."

"So, can Destiny Game give me an office?"

"Like Edgar Codd."

"Or you can just buy my company."

“Same as Bill Mensch.”

“I think I can do this for another 10 years.”

Ethan was very happy with Douglas' choice!
Although he didn't want to meet with Xerox people, as long as he was willing to join the game of fate, it meant that he would provide his own ideas and suggestions for the development of the graphical user interface.

This……

enough.

Since Xerox had already produced mature products and the ultimate decision makers at Apple were Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Douglas's best option was to be a consultant.

If he insists on participating in the research and development, it will cause conflicts.

After thanking Douglas for his choice and chatting for a while at his home, Ethan, who had nothing else to do, stood up and said goodbye. Before leaving, Douglas's child, a young man about the same age as Ethan, suddenly took out a camera and wanted to take a photo.

After asking carefully, I found out that they were also fans of the Destiny game.

There is even a Johnson home console in the living room.

The sudden accident surprised Ethan a little, and he also fulfilled the other party's wish. Not only that, he and Evelyn also left a blessing on the host:

'Wishing the Engelbart family happiness and health. --Ethan Jones, Evelyn Johnson'

"Eve--" On the way back, Ethan called out his sister's nickname while driving.

"Ok?"

"Sorry to trouble you with Doug's matter. Please keep an eye on it these few days and ask him to move in as soon as possible."

"Okay." Evelyn understood what Ethan meant. "I will come again tomorrow to discuss the acquisition of the company with Doug. Don't worry, no one can take him away from us."

After getting in touch with Douglas Engelbart, Ethan completed his first task, and the second task was to buy all the patents related to the graphical user interface from the Stanford Research Institute. This matter is simple and difficult, because when Ethan handed his list of requirements to the current head of the Stanford Research Institute...

This guy said he couldn't make the decision.

"Ethan, purchasing patents in large quantities has happened before."

"But this is not something I can approve. It needs to be brought to the attention of the board of directors." "You know, the greatest significance of the Stanford Research Institute is to attract enough outstanding companies to set up their research labs for Stanford University."

“As long as high-tech companies continue to move into the park, Stanford teachers and students will be able to obtain cutting-edge jobs and experimental topics.”

“But that’s not the only goal.”

"Creating revenue for the school is also one of the missions of the institute."

"Every time a company comes to purchase patents in large quantities, it means that they will commercialize the results of these patents in a short period of time."

"This is actually a good profit opportunity for schools and research institutes."

"So every time this happens, the board of directors will hold a meeting to discuss at what price these patents should be sold to help the school run better in the future."

"This……"

"It's really between you and Fred, isn't it?"

The current head of the Stanford Research Institute looked at Ethan with a smile.

"Go talk to the principal."

Since the other party said so, Ethan naturally did not hesitate and went to find the principal with the list.

When Fred Terman learned that the graphical user interface that caused a sensation more than a decade ago now finally had the possibility of commercialization, he immediately sighed with emotion.

"very good……"

“That’s why I founded the institute…”

"So that one day in the future, a product that changes the world can be born from Stanford..."

"I don't know when this day will come, but I know..."

"You never seem to lose?"

"So you want these patents, then take them..."

"But there is one thing I want to make clear."

"If it's held by the game of fate, you can pay any amount of money."

“But if Apple holds it, then I hope Apple can exchange it for shares.”

"Game of Destiny is your company. If the school has difficulties in the future, you will definitely help. But Apple is different. It is not our Stanford company, so..."

"We will sell these patents for whatever they are worth."

"Okay?"

The old principal, who was sitting on the recliner, raised his head.

The thick lenses sparkle in the sun.

"Yeah~"

Ethan understood what the old principal meant, "I'll bring Apple's financial statements."

"Okay." The old principal nodded, "I'll wait for you."

Since Fred Terman wanted to make a personal connection with the graphical user interface and seek some benefits for Stanford, which he had been in charge of for a lifetime, Ethan would naturally not refuse.

What's more, when there are many interests involved in Apple, on the surface, doing things impartially is reducing his wealth, but in fact this approach is more beneficial to him.

Just like what the old principal said, Apple is not just his company after all.

As the Game of Destiny develops better and better, Stanford will definitely unwaveringly support the company it has incubated, so after they enter the Apple game, they will only vote with Ethan. In the face of this fact, Ethan's wealth has indeed decreased, but his control has intensified.

So...

The whole thing fell on Steve Jobs again.

Perhaps because Joe couldn't wait to embrace the future, he took only three days to sort out all the accounts of Apple since its establishment on April 1, 1976 on August 4 and handed them to Ethan.

On the surface, Ethan needed to study four years of accounts, but in reality, he only wanted to look at the financial statements for the first half of this year. Because there were no projects in 1976, he had already read the accounts for 1977 when Lawrence Rockefeller invested, and he had already read the statements for 1978, which was last year, a few months ago, during the first National Electronic Game Competition.

As for the accounts for the first half of this year...

That's really beautiful.

Stimulated by the spreadsheet launched by Microsoft, the sales of Apple II and external disk drives were rising in a straight line. In just six months, 280,000 units of the 5 1/4 floppy disk drive were sold. Based on the selling price of $495, this product alone brought Apple $138.6 million in operating income.

As for the Apple II...

Apple sold a total of 110,000 personal computers in the first half of the year.

Since Jobs lowered the price of the product to $1,195 earlier this year, the product's operating revenue was $131.45 million.

That's right!

In just six months, Apple has earned $270 million!

Although the figure of 270 million is not enough compared with the sales of 600 million of Johnson's home console in three days, under the management of new CEO Roger Corian, Apple's daily operations have improved a lot. The gross profit of personal computers can reach 13%, and the gross profit of floppy disks is even higher.

Maybe 17 percent.

When Ethan saw this number, he realized how cruel the capitalists could be.

The floppy disk drive was not invented by Steve Wozniak, or rather, there were similar products on the market before Apple's external disk came out.

But not only are they very expensive, their capacity is also very small.

When Steve Jobs sold external hard disks at the cheapest price on the market, $495, and still made a 17 percent gross profit, other companies' similar products were simply killing pigs!
but……

This is actually a good thing.

If those people are not black-hearted, how can Apple reflect its conscience?

After all, there is no real good or bad in this world, only contrast.

With the accurate calculation of gross profit margin, Apple's gross profit in the first half of 1979 was clearly visible. When Ethan captured the figure of just over 40 million...

The corners of his mouth lifted up involuntarily.

"Even if our sales figures grow steadily in the second half of the year, our gross profit this year will still be 80 million."

"If this is a listed company, its market value would be at least 1.6 billion."

"Really?" Jobs' eyes lit up.

Of course he trusted Ethan's judgment, and he asked just to express his surprise.

Because at this moment he owns 31.5% of the company's shares!
This means that his net worth exceeds 500 million!

more importantly!
He is only twenty-four years old this year!
What does it mean to be a 500 millionaire at the age of 24?
No matter where this special code is placed, it represents great success!

Note: ① I adjusted Apple’s sales data upward and moved it up by one year. In reality, their market value on the first day of listing on December 1980, 12 was US$12 billion.

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(End of this chapter)