America: My Time

Chapter 866 Bottom Line or Warning
Chapter 836 Bottom Line or Warning

The idea was good, but the reality was harsh. They were still far from catching up with Nvidia, at least in terms of talent. In the past few battles, Nvidia had absorbed a lot of talent. It wouldn't be easy for those guys to catch up with Nvidia; they would have to pay a much higher price. They only saw how Nvidia made money, but they didn't see the crazy R&D costs behind it.

Just as some people now believe they might be able to compete with Bell Labs in the field of communications, in reality they have paid a much higher price and still haven't caught up. Those guys only saw the gains, but didn't see how staggering the price they paid was. Bell Labs' annual research and development funds were enormous; at least John never profited from Bell Labs. All of it was invested in technological research and development, accelerating their own research pace and widening the gap with their enemies.

Currently, the gap between companies in the communications field isn't that large, but if you don't work hard, you'll quickly be overtaken. That's why Bell Labs invests all its funds in research and development, which is why its growth rate is astonishing. Just like Nvidia, John has discussed with shareholders more than once about investing more funds in research and development, but some people insist on opposing it for their short-term gains. If he hadn't always held absolute power, Nvidia would probably be in trouble now. Once they see profits, they're unwilling to invest huge sums in research and development. This is the biggest problem with listed companies. These people only want to recoup their investment as soon as possible and don't consider the company's development at all. For them, as long as they can recoup their investment, it doesn't matter if the company goes bankrupt. This is the mindset of Wall Street.

"Sit down, Jimmy. You didn't come to see me this time because of what happened before, did you? Is that putting pressure on Morgan?" When he saw Jimmy appear in front of him again, and that he had come all the way from New York to San Francisco, John's face showed a faint smile. The only thing that could make this guy come from so far away was profit. Only profit could make him take the initiative!

"It is indeed because of what happened before. Do you know how much the split of the two major groups affected Wall Street? Almost the entire Wall Street thought you were crazy, doing something insane, something that shocked everyone!"

"Yes, in their eyes I'm crazy, but I have no choice. I'm forced into this situation. If I don't do this, I'm afraid I'll be devoured step by step by those old guys. Those guys are too greedy. Isn't the failed acquisition of President Shipping the best example? This is the only way I can protect myself. And this is just the beginning. You know the situation with Nvidia, and there's Dreamworld. Those guys only think about splitting the profits. They don't want to invest more funds in research and development. They don't think it's that important for us to further develop better chips. But if we stop, we'll be overtaken. What do you think I can do?"

“John, when are Southern Group and Forever Group going public? We need to be prepared too. And what's the deal with Global Navigation Company? We also want to know when it will go public. It's really making waves right now, and a lot of people are watching it, especially those oil tycoons. Once things in the Middle East were exposed, those guys went crazy targeting you like they were on steroids.”

"A full listing is impossible. We'll only list one company at a time. Otherwise, those old guys could easily seize control, and I don't want to be outmaneuvered by them. Victoria's Secret and Forever 21 are ready to go public at any time, but you can decide everything yourselves. The group itself won't go public. As for Maybelline, it's still a long way off; it hasn't made much progress at all. As for Southern Group, you know it's not ready for an IPO yet. Best Buy has undergone some adjustments, but it's still far from my goal, so we'll wait. However, there's some good news: Seagate's IPO won't be too far off. There's good news coming soon, so you should prepare in advance!"

John was still willing to share profits with Morgan; otherwise, how could he have kept Morgan on his side all this time? As for Global Navigation Company, John didn't mention it, and Jimmy didn't ask either. He knew that even if he pressed for details, it would be useless. What he couldn't understand, his boss certainly could.

"Could internet cafe alliances go public and raise funds?" Jimmy suddenly mentioned internet cafe alliances. With their continuous expansion, internet cafe alliances are now quite attractive. This is a sunrise industry. After all, Americans love to play games, and many people are very interested in such emerging internet cafe alliances, and the profits are astonishingly high.

"Going public is not a problem, but you know how valuable it is now. Internet cafe alliances have taken over major cities across the United States, and we have also partnered with Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Starbucks to provide ordering services for everyone."

When Jimmy heard John's words, he didn't know how to respond. Almost all the internet cafe alliance's locations were near these fast-food restaurants, so this partnership directly boosted the fast-food restaurants' business. Moreover, the internet cafe alliance also sold drinks and food; they were truly taking customer service to the extreme. People of this era were directly experiencing the service enthusiasm of later generations, and the internet cafe alliance's food and drinks were directly supplied by 7-Eleven convenience stores—the cooperation was incredibly smooth. "John, do you know how the other convenience stores and those fast-food companies are cursing you? They call you a devil! You're directly undermining them! Your internet cafe alliance is booming, but it's also directly making those fast-food restaurants boom. They're the ones who suffer!"

"This has nothing to do with me; it's just a coincidence. Their store location doesn't fit our plans, so they have only themselves to blame. Besides, we're not refusing their delivery service, but the customers are still dissatisfied!"

What a customer dissatisfaction! There are only a few fast food restaurants within a dozen meters of the internet cafe alliance; you can hardly see any other fast food restaurants. They're too far away, and the food would be cold by the time it arrives. Who would choose to eat cold food over hot food? Even a fool wouldn't do that.

"Alright, I won't talk about this anymore. Since you have no questions, that's good. We can then prepare to arrange the launch time for them. Don't worry, you definitely won't suffer any losses!" Seeing that John didn't refuse at all, Jimmy was also very happy, after all, this meant that his income would increase significantly.

"I have faith in Morgan's capabilities; otherwise, we wouldn't have been working together for so long. However, there's one thing I must make clear upfront: the fast-food brands will need some time to go public. I need to integrate them into a single restaurant giant, so an IPO is impossible before that integration. Of course, you won't have to wait too long; things have already begun over there!"

Needless to say, this will be separated from the Mandarin Oriental Group again. When Jimmy heard this, he was completely distraught. He was distressed by John's crazy actions because Morgan had just rejected Rockefeller's request before he arrived, refusing to act as a mediator and to mediate between them.

“John, isn’t this a bit too crazy? You don’t need to do this. Rockefeller has already shown signs of compromise and has even asked us to act as mediators so that everyone can sit down and talk. Although we refused, you don’t need to offend Rockefeller to the point of no return. This will have a significant impact on you!”

"I know that before you came here, someone had already told me about the Rockefeller guys' decision. You don't think they're all united, do you? There's always someone who can't sit still. And I don't think there's anything wrong with what I'm doing. This isn't my fault. With one attack after another, how can I invest in the US with peace of mind? Those guys keep saying they don't want to invest, but every time I try to invest, they do something to sabotage me. I have no choice but to do this to protect myself. At least I haven't spun off the other businesses here in the US. I've already saved them face. If the Mandarin Oriental Group spins off the commercial center, shopping mall, and even the cocktail party, then they'll really lose face and will have to give the American public an explanation."

At this moment, John's tone shifted, and he sighed, saying, "Since you've put it this way, let me share my thoughts. I'm tired. I don't want to fight those old guys anymore. To avoid conflict, I've even dabbled in sunset industries like shipbuilding and shipping. What more do they want from me? I have nowhere to retreat; they've forced me to fight back. If they truly don't want further conflict, then they shouldn't target me. I understand those old guys' concerns. I can back down on my domestic investments; I won't compete with them for those businesses. However, my funds can't remain idle indefinitely. I intend to acquire a waste management service company to avoid conflict with them. Oregon also intends to improve some businesses, such as paper mills and steel mills, for recycling usable waste! You can tell them what I've said. If they accept, then it's over. If not, then there's no need to discuss it further!"

John had many ideas about Oregon, but a waste management service company was a good option. The United States is the world's largest consumer of waste, and waste management companies can generate considerable profits. Moreover, Oregon is known as a leading environmental protection state in the future.

(End of this chapter)