2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 776: Flowers Bloom in the Capital, Bringing Their Own Halo.

August 16, 798 Art Center, Beijing.

How's the handling of Apple's stock going?

Today, the 798 Art Center was bustling with people. In addition to Tan Jincheng, Huang Ming and Cheng Linfeng were among those invited.

ByteDance is, after all, Xiaomi's second-largest shareholder.

Cheng Linfeng chuckled softly, "It's basically all taken care of. We made quite a bit of money this time."

According to Tan Jincheng, he will sell 265.3 million shares of Apple stock, which he holds 525.3 million shares of.

Starting in July, Cheng Linfeng gradually sold off these shares, recovering a total of $17.64 billion. The remaining Apple shares are still worth more than $17 billion.

With an investment of around $5 million, they made $30 billion – that's a huge profit indeed.

Tan Jincheng nodded: "Okay, Mr. Huang, please arrange and plan this fund well. Part of it will stay in the United States, and part of it will go to Frankfurt."

$17 billion is a huge sum of money. Apart from the $10 billion used to acquire Nvidia, the remainder will be used for research on intelligent driving solutions.

The Frankfurt branch is called a branch office, but it's more like a studio. It doesn't have many employees, and most of them are engaged in research and development. In addition, it's like a transit point.

The technology learned from Nvidia was transferred to China via Frankfurt. Many of these technical personnel came from the China Academy of Sciences and the Qingmu Group. Guo Jia was very supportive of Wei Lai's acquisition of Nvidia shares.

Not only did they support technical personnel, but they also invested $200 million. However, the 20% stake acquired with this $200 million cannot be disclosed until the first-generation BPU architecture of Weilai is developed.

In addition, the market value of Apple's stock holdings is not only from ByteDance's advertising platform, but also from Tan Jincheng's own investment firm, Jinqing Investment.

This can be considered a way to indirectly transfer foreign investment back to China. After making so much money investing in the US, it would be quite difficult to simply transfer the cash back.

It's different when it's transformed into technology.

Semiconductor companies have not found particularly suitable acquisitions. After the Hanxin No. 1 scam, the situation for domestic semiconductor companies, apart from the legitimate state-owned enterprises, is truly indescribable.

There were a few suitable ones, but their quotes were outrageous.

Tan Jincheng didn't want to wait any longer. Since that was the case, he decided to start his own business. It was 2012, and as a technology company that only made intelligent driving solutions, there was still time.

Has General Manager Yu arrived yet?

"He's here. Mr. Lei has arranged for him to be with you."

"Okay, let's go then."

The reason why Tan Jincheng and the entire ByteDance team were present at the Xiaomi 2 launch event was because of the establishment of the semiconductor company. Huang Ming is now a celebrity in the investment circle, and Cheng Linfeng is also a big name in the fund circle.

Cheng Linfeng, who is in charge of secondary market investments for ByteDance's advertising platform, manages several sovereign wealth funds. Since 2007, these funds have not only maintained stable returns but have also been experiencing rapid growth.

Many large investors hope to board this high-growth train, but ByteDance's customer acquisition platform is very strict and has very demanding conditions.

To get an admission ticket, besides the financial requirements, you also need connections. People without a certain social standing generally can't get one, not even relatives of Tan Huangcheng and the other two.

To put it bluntly, ByteDance's advertising platform doesn't really operate on the financial model. Sovereign wealth funds are just using the name of private equity funds to attract funds in the secondary market, and they never intended to acquire many clients or earn commissions from them.

If they're not in it to make money off you, then the power of discourse naturally rests entirely in the hands of ByteDance's management.

The "General Manager Yu" that Tan Jincheng mentioned is Yu Kai, an internationally renowned robotics expert. He graduated from Jinling University and, after studying at the University of Munich, went to work at NEC Research Institute in the United States.

While serving as the department head, I also gained in-depth knowledge of product technology development in areas such as image recognition, text mining, multimedia retrieval, video surveillance, and human-computer interaction.

In addition, Yu Kai also had experience as a senior researcher in the data mining department of Siemens.

In terms of resume, Yu Kai is absolutely outstanding. One key point is that he completed his undergraduate studies in China. Although he is currently working in the United States, no one doubts that he will return to China in the future.

It was a stroke of luck that Tan Jincheng got to know him.

In the past two years, the State Council has launched the Dragon Star Project, which organizes a group of students who have already achieved success and have a certain status in the academic community in the United States to return to China from time to time to teach a graduate course in a certain field at universities across the country.

Yu Kai is one of them; he teaches summer courses on "Machine Learning" at both Tsinghua University and Chung-Shan University.

Tsinghua University, Chung-Ke College, and even Liu Cheng of 36Kr all highly regard Yu Kai. These experts who have studied in the United States invited them back to give lectures, but the real reason behind it was to get them to return to China to work and start businesses.

There are certainly many large companies eyeing them, and with the support of many, Tan Jincheng also set his sights on Yu Kai.

In fact, Baidu had already set its sights on Yu Kai before Tan Jincheng. Baidu really wanted to invite Yu Kai to join them. This information was obtained through a headhunter. In his previous life, Tan Jincheng had never heard of Yu Kai.

However, he knew that Baidu was one of the earliest companies in China to conduct artificial intelligence research and that its technology was relatively advanced.

With such an impressive resume, and having been targeted by Baidu to head artificial intelligence, we absolutely have to get him.

Tan Jincheng's method of acquiring Yu Kai was quite simple and brutal: he gave him shares, and even more than Baidu did.

As for other benefits, the Beijing government will naturally satisfy Yu Kai's needs, and placing the company in Beijing is also based on this consideration.

Today marks the fifth time Tan Jincheng has met Yu Kai. Throughout July, Tan Jincheng reluctantly attended several of his classes.

I couldn't understand what he said, but based on what he said and the information he knew about artificial intelligence from his previous life, I was somewhat convinced that this guy was a genius.

Such an amazing person, who rarely appeared in the media in his previous life, only proves that the tech world is truly full of hidden talents.

Project DragonStar is a really good thing.

However, what impressed Tan Jincheng was that the relationship between the two sides was really good in this era, and cooperation in science and technology was not as difficult as Tan Jincheng had imagined. The fact that the Dragon Star Project could be implemented was essentially a good example.

Working and studying in the US, earning a salary from them, and then passing on the knowledge gained back to China—this is something we wouldn't even dare to imagine 10 years from now.

"Let's work together, Mr. Yu. Forget about Baidu. Our platform is just as good. You probably don't know this, but we also have Weilai Intelligent Driving, which focuses on automotive-grade chip research. If the new company can achieve a certain level of success, it's bound to be a leading company."

"Besides, our reputation is much better than Baidu's. When making money, we should also consider our reputation."

Xiaomi's second product launch was as exciting as ever. The price of 1999 yuan is the same as the first generation. This price is really enough. With two high-configuration smartphones priced at this price, there is really no rival.

It features a mainstream 4.3-inch screen, an aluminum-magnesium alloy frame design, a black front, and a white detachable back cover. Tan Jincheng thinks the design is a bit outdated, but it was quite attractive in 2012.

Xiaomi's early designs weren't particularly stunning, but they were mainstream, and their price and specifications were undeniably impressive.

"President Tan's way of extending the invitation is truly unique."

Yu Kai was speechless at Baidu's bad reputation. He really didn't shy away from the topic. If this got back to Boss Li, it would definitely offend someone.

"Currently, there are only a handful of companies worldwide that produce automotive-grade chips. If we start developing them now, we have a chance to gain a foothold."

In 2012, the development of automotive-grade chips was far from being very intelligent; of course, this was only reflected in the market, and no one knew what technologies each company was hiding.

Just like how WooLai Auto doesn't adapt all the latest technologies to its existing vehicles.

Representative companies include Infineon, NXP, Texas Instruments, etc., while major players in automotive-grade chips such as Nvidia and Mobileye (a shell of Intel) were still in the early stages of research and development a few years later.

Yu Kai knew what Tan Jincheng was talking about, but he didn't expect that a boss who didn't understand technology would have such great ambitions.

"May I ask Mr. Tan why you spend so much energy and capital on research and development? According to the current logic of OEMs, they don't need to do their own research and development; they can just buy these things after the technology breaks through."

From January to July, the Yuechi series sold a total of 15.17 vehicles, with the three models averaging 2.16 vehicles sold per month. According to market forecasts, the total sales of the Yuechi series for the whole year should be over 28 vehicles.

In addition, Yangzi's newly launched Qilin series pickup trucks, with their novel design and extremely high comfort, have been widely welcomed by pickup truck enthusiasts after a few months of adaptation, and sales are rising steadily every month.

Over the past seven months, summaries of the car market have frequently emerged. Weilai's series of performances in the fuel vehicle sector have given the market a pleasant surprise, and Yangzi Pickup's total sales this year are very likely to exceed 3 units.

Major professional media outlets unanimously predict that Weilai Automobile's overall sales this year will exceed 30 vehicles. Without the so-called core component R&D mentioned by Boss Tan, Weilai Group would be making an unimaginable amount of money.

"Direct procurement is certainly more convenient, and even the cost is much lower, but this is also a way to prepare for the future."

Independent research and development means higher costs. Most companies actually have the ability to independently develop core components, but why do they still purchase from the supply chain? It's mainly due to cost considerations.

Domestic companies are not without R&D capabilities for automotive-grade chips, but with chips, being able to develop them is one thing, mass production is another. Only when large-scale mass production is achieved can the R&D be considered successful.

Otherwise, it's just a concept, a gimmick.

Business transactions often cannot be explained by a particular event; of course, thinking that way is somewhat short-sighted and will certainly lead to trouble later.

Wei Lai's motivation for independent research and development stems largely from Tan Jincheng's experience during that period. In 2018, whenever a listed company was on the list, its stock price would instantly collapse, causing a profound impact on the entire nation.

"Prepare for a rainy day? What do you mean by that?"

After thinking for a moment, Tan Jincheng said, "To give you an example, when kindergarten children get along well, they can share toys with each other. But if they fall out, one of the children will definitely say, 'I won't let you play with my toys.'"

"If another child happens to not have this toy, wouldn't he feel disappointed?"

Some things are better left unsaid, but Tan Jincheng believed Yu Kai would understand.

When it comes to the biggest cost component of new energy vehicles, it is definitely the battery. The battery cost can account for 40% to 60% of the total vehicle cost. GAC's CEO once complained that they were working for Ning Wang.

While intelligent driving chips aren't as expensive as batteries, they are crucial products related to vehicle driving safety and are key to the future of automotive technology. "I think I understand what Mr. Tan means; this is indeed a forward-thinking idea."

"Besides these, I also hope that one day in the future our car companies can be confident in their technology and their brands, instead of relying on using parts from a foreign brand as a selling point, as is the case now."

"When the time comes, when it comes to automotive-grade smart chips, I hope everyone can proudly say that these are developed and produced by our company."

While Tan Jincheng may not like Dazui's overly aggressive marketing approach, it undeniably brings us brand confidence, technological confidence, and increases consumers' awareness of domestic brands.

Previously, consumers were proud to use foreign brands, and this remains true today. Apple is virtually invincible in the smartphone market, and whenever there is any negative news about it, someone will try to whitewash it.

Xiaomi doesn't receive the same treatment, which certainly indicates quality issues, but ultimately it's because it's a domestic brand and hasn't yet gained consumer recognition.

Like Samsung and Samsung in the Android camp, their so-called high-end phones also get hot after a period of use, and in terms of resale value, they can't compare with Xiaomi.

Xiaomi phones have scalpers; once you buy a Samsung phone, you lose about 1000 yuan, but nobody says anything about it.

"That's an inspiring statement; alright, I'll do it with you and try starting my own business."

Tan Jincheng offered him incredibly favorable terms: he would be the CEO of the new company, he would build the team, and in addition to the research direction being set as intelligent car chips, he would also be in charge of the company's operations.

In addition, Tan Jincheng's greatest sincerity was giving him and his team a 5% stake, which would not be diluted in any financing process until the IPO.

When he entered the high-tech industry, Tan Jincheng fully realized the importance of talent.

In reality, the bosses of high-tech companies are all subservient; the tech experts are the real bosses. A single tech expert can determine the future direction of a high-tech company.

The chip industry is a prime example; just look at the dispute between NetDragon and Xiongjun. NetDragon refused to give Xiongjun any shares, believing that he could be replaced and that changing management would still make them the market leader.

But that's not actually the case. After Xiong Jun left, NetDragon's mobile assistant was practically defunct, while 91 Mobile Assistant remained the fastest-updating and most technologically advanced. All of this was the result of Xiong Jun's tireless efforts and working overtime day and night.

All of this is actually due to an outstanding individual and an outstanding team.

Why are Xiong Jun and his team working so hard? It's because Tan Jincheng gave them 15% of the shares. Taking Baidu's initial offer as an example, this 15% stake would have been enough to make them financially independent.

Why was Lei Jun able to poach engineers from Meizu? It's because Huang Jingyu was too stingy. He wouldn't even give the three musketeers who started the business with him a small share of the company, treating them like employees. Who could stand that?

It goes without saying what a 5% stake in a high-tech company means. Wei Laixin's newly established semiconductor company alone prepared a first registered capital of 5 million US dollars.

Even excluding salary and benefits, it's equivalent to Tan Jincheng offering him over 100 million RMB as a token of goodwill to invite him to join the company.

"The new company belongs to Weilai, but it also belongs to you, Mr. Yu. I will let it operate independently, rather than as a subsidiary of Weilai. In terms of level, it will be on the same level as Weilai."

"In addition, our operating philosophy for the new company is an open ecosystem, a combination of hardware and software, and service first."

"The new company will also have financing needs in the future, but all of this will have to wait for several years, and we will provide the funds needed during those years."

The future of intelligent driving chips lies after 2015. Tan Jincheng does not object to his research being used in other companies' products, but such high-tech products will definitely be prioritized for supply to Weilai Automobile.

With a three-year advantage, what can Dizi and Tesla do? It's not impossible for them to clash.

In addition, the new company comes with its own halo, backed by the national team. This is also the main reason why the company is located in Beijing. The company's future headquarters will be located in the integrated circuit industrial park in Zhongguancun.

The Beijing government and the Zhongguancun Integrated Circuit Industrial Park have shown great sincerity by offering substantial tax and talent incentives. They even granted Tan Jincheng 20 Beijing residency permits, which will be a powerful tool for attracting investment to Beijing even in 2024.

Of the $500 million in registered capital, the Chinese government provided $200 million, which was agreed upon during the previous talks about acquiring Nvidia shares and was intended for the new company.

The funds can be used for the new company and can be converted into RMB. Tan Jincheng's funds are used abroad, so the domestic funds will not affect foreign exchange.

It's fair to say that the new company was acquired for free; it didn't even need Wei to provide funding in the early stages to get it running.

"Now that you put it that way, I understand."

Yu Kai had no more worries. The new company was an independent high-tech company, mainly led by him and his team, with Tan Jincheng as the independent investor, and also supported by the national team.

The company's location in Zhongguancun, a high-tech industrial park, offers significant advantages in many aspects.

He had almost accepted Baidu's invitation to return to China and lead Baidu's artificial intelligence R&D team, but now he has been persuaded by Tan Jincheng.

We have money, manpower, and favorable policies; let's just get started: "Okay, leave it to me. By the way, what's the name of the new company?"

Tan Jincheng laughed and said, "You decide on the company name, since you'll be the legal representative anyway."

That's settled, we're even starting to think of a company name.

Yu Kai thought for a while and then said, "How about we call it Horizon? What do you think?"

"Huh? Horizon? What does that mean?"

Tan Jincheng was stunned. He seemed to have heard of this company in his previous life; it was a unicorn company, but he didn't know much about it.

“Here’s what I’m thinking: the horizon is the dividing line between the ground and the sky. Using this name for a technology company implies infinite possibilities. Also, as you said, Mr. Tan, the new company is an independent company and will have more partners in the future. So it’s better to distinguish it from the Flash Group and the Weilai Group in terms of name.”

The first point is his own understanding; it doesn't matter what it's called, it can be called whatever you want.

However, what he said later does make some sense. Since the goal is to create an independent company and then do business with other OEMs after mass production, it is necessary to differentiate it from the Flash and Weilai groups in terms of name.

This is different from batteries. There are actually many battery manufacturers, large and small, and the difference lies in their market share.

There are only a handful of true players in the core components of intelligent driving. If they want to supply other OEMs in the future, those OEMs will definitely have to take a stake in them. Maintaining independence is indeed necessary.

Unless they don't do business with other companies, like BYD Semiconductor, and only supply their own products.

"Then let's call it Horizon. Your idea is good, and it should indeed be different from my current naming conventions."

"Okay, then I'll start making preparations. I'll build the team myself."

Yu Kai has a good network of connections. He has been in charge of Siemens and the US. He can quickly build a qualified team when he returns to China to start his own business. This is also the reason why Tan Jincheng values ​​him.

"Okay, then you should first assemble a team and find a suitable location in the power generation park. I will send someone to assist you with any liaison work with Zhongguancun."

"No problem, then I'll stay in the capital for now."

After discussing the details further, Tan Jincheng left. Both of them were very busy, and they only managed to find a time to talk in detail today because of the Xiaomi 2 launch event.

In addition, both parties need to sign some agreements and talk to the legal department. In short, Tan Jincheng will be staying in the capital for the next few days.

Fortunately, it's summer vacation now, and Tan Jincheng brought his whole family to the capital for a trip. Gu Qingqing also came along to stay for a few days. Tan Jinchuan, who is just over a year old, is at an age that even dogs would dislike, so he was really worried without her by his side to take care of him.

Speaking of which, Gu Qingqing has really sacrificed a lot over the years. She can't balance work and life. Tan Jincheng is too busy, and even if he wants to take care of his family, it is difficult for him. In order to balance family and career, Gu Qingqing has to make some sacrifices.

She has to balance work and family.

If it weren't for her cousin Gu Yanning now being her full-time assistant, she wouldn't know how busy she would be.

Gu Qingqing also made a low-key appearance at Xiaomi's press conference today, but she quietly returned home after the conference. The small house near Zhongguancun from years ago was clearly no longer suitable.

Tan Jincheng bought a large apartment in a newly built residential area in recent years. Now, the whole family except him is relaxing in the apartment. There are still quite a few places to visit in the capital.

This is probably the greatest convenience that Tan Jincheng can provide for his family. Taking advantage of the business trip, he takes the whole family to travel to various cities when everyone has time, so they can change their mood and broaden their horizons.

With the cooperation of Zeng Jixiang and his team, Yu Kai acted quickly, completing the company registration procedures in a week, and team members were gradually arriving.

2012 8 Month 23 Day.

"Mr. Tan, look, consider this your birthday present."

With a smile, Yu Kai handed the company's business license to Tan Jincheng. The registration date was today, which was Qixi Festival and Tan Jincheng's 27th birthday.

He didn't go to the company today; Yu Kai came to his door on his own initiative.

"Oh? Mr. Yu, that's so kind of you. Thank you."

Tan Jincheng has high emotional intelligence; he's even more confident in Horizon Robotics' future. This 5% stake isn't just a freebie.

According to Horizon Robotics' shareholding structure, ByteDance holds 51%, Jinqing Investment holds 12%, Chengyue Investment holds 12%, Guo Jia's shadow company holds 20%, and Yu Kai and his team hold 5%.

Future shares will be diluted with financing, but Tan Jincheng will definitely be Horizon Robotics' largest shareholder.

However, regardless of the circumstances, the Yu Kai team, whose assets cannot be diluted before the IPO, is sufficient to guarantee their interests.

Horizon Robotics, which was officially established on Qixi Festival and was surrounded by its own halo, quickly caused a stir in Zhongguancun and even the national tech circles. Li from Baidu was furious when he heard the news.

This is an industry leader he's been lobbying for a long time; he's one of the key figures representing Baidu's future transformation in the mobile internet direction.

That's how it got snatched away.

"Damn it, we need to cause him some trouble. Bumblebee is asking us for funding, right? We should agree to his request and let him compete with Kuaidi."

(End of this chapter)