From knock-off old-man's electric vehicles to industrial giant

Chapter 117 "The Law of Conservation of Sales"

of course.

Some people are particularly optimistic about Xingchen Motors and readily agreed, willing to take the initiative to explore the lower-tier market areas that are not yet covered.

then.

Yu Nian then reported on the movements of competing models from other manufacturers in the market.

For example, Wuling Mini has launched an interest-free policy, and domestic entry-level cars priced around 50,000 to 60,000 yuan, whether gasoline or converted from gasoline, have also offered various discounts, which are quite substantial for this price range.

In short, the strong rise of Star Mini during this period has brought about considerable market fluctuations and external discussions.

—The Law of Conservation of Sales

If some people experience a surge in sales, then one inevitable consequence is that others will see a year-on-year decrease in sales.

Despite this being a brand new and highly competitive market segment, existing entry-level cars priced around this level have suffered varying degrees of "downward pressure"!

Some have even started a retaliatory clearance sale of their inventory!

“We found through the application information from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology that Chery and BAIC have submitted application information for new pure electric mini models. The product parameters and appearance positioning are very similar to ours. They have also made some optimizations and minor upgrades in configuration, which is a sign of benchmarking. It is expected that they will be officially launched soon and join the competition.”

Yu Nian said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Hear this.

Xu Yi couldn't help but be slightly taken aback.

Checking the new car configuration declaration information through the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology was originally a method used by industry insiders or car reviewers to keep track of the latest model declaration dynamics of car manufacturers.

It's worth mentioning, however, that many Jike car owners later learned this trick.

The fear of being forced to "polish three swords in a year" has been deeply ingrained in their minds, which has subsequently drawn the attention of owners of other brands of new energy vehicles to this aspect.

Xu Yi exclaimed in surprise, "Our competitor's efficiency is... quite high."

Yu Nian responded: "Yes, strictly speaking, these two companies are not developing new cars. They had accumulated relevant pure electric platforms before our launch. This time, they just made a major facelift to their models and positioned them in the same price range as ours. BAIC previously had the EC180, Chery previously had the eQ... After subsidies, their prices were positioned at 6 to 8 yuan. Now, by transplanting and optimizing the technology and platform, they have launched a new mini model, and the launch speed is very fast."

Xu Yi had nothing to say about this.

Joint venture manufacturers are usually not interested in products priced under 50,000 yuan.

But for these traditional domestic brands, if they can consistently achieve sales of 10,000 units per month, they'll be truly satisfied and will be willing to lose money to get involved!

Moreover, in the long run, selling Mini cars will definitely not be a loss.

Since two companies have already completed their applications, it means that other brands with technological expertise will follow suit soon.

Our competitors are sprinting into the race!

"It doesn't matter! We're still far ahead!!"

Xu Yi waved his hand, indicating that this lead was not only reflected in the first-mover advantage, but in all aspects.

With their self-developed technology and direct-sales model, it will be difficult for competitors to catch up with them in the short term, whether in terms of product strength or user experience.

Traditional automakers have their own set of problems.

It's not enough to just release a competing model; often, the sales system, the overall user experience, and the level of importance the automaker places on the new model are what truly determine whether a car will sell like hotcakes.

What's more.

With competitors rushing to launch new models in such a short period, it remains to be seen whether their product capabilities and overall user experience can keep up.

This is evident just by looking at the market feedback on the Wuling Mini.

……

After the morning meeting.

Xu Yi then began to work on another urgent matter.

That refers to the establishment and expansion of their Star Automotive's in-vehicle infotainment department.

Strictly speaking...

Currently, Xingchen Automotive is completely lacking in this area of ​​technological accumulation, as it lacks a leader capable of spearheading the research and development.

As their first generation of intelligent vehicle system, a solid foundation is essential.

A complete intelligent vehicle system not only involves the entire intelligent cockpit experience, but also directly connects with advanced intelligent driving.

While it's easy and quick to find a readily available, modified Android system from the supply chain and apply it, it also directly locks in the limits of its future potential.

Android has a ready-made framework and ecosystem, so you can fit anything into it. However, problems such as memory leaks, slowdowns over time, process conflicts, and poor stability can also occur later on.

Xu Yi's initial goal is to develop a unique intelligent vehicle system framework for their Xingchen Motors, based on the "Linux kernel".

The advantages of using a vehicle infotainment system developed with a Linux kernel are numerous. The biggest feature is that the underlying layers are completely integrated, making it easy to achieve "lightweight" and "customization". Moreover, its stability far exceeds that of Android, and with proper optimization, it can achieve "millisecond-level response", allowing car owners to drive the vehicle infotainment system for hundreds of thousands of kilometers without any lag or sluggishness.

This "millisecond-level response" is not only reflected in software operation, but is also related to the real-time underlying control of the entire new energy vehicle, such as "BMS battery management" and "ESC electronic stability control". It can more easily achieve automotive-grade control and automotive-grade security vulnerability management.

Looking at the future development trend of the entire industry.

Tesla uses a vehicle infotainment system developed with the "Linux 3.1 kernel".

Early domestic new energy vehicle manufacturers often used the Android kernel, which is a "customized version of Android" in-vehicle system.

The development speed and efficiency are faster, and there are more functions.

It can achieve automotive-grade safety, including intelligent driving collaboration and real-time control at the vehicle's underlying level, which is basically at the level of a roadside vehicle.

They spent a lot of effort recruiting top talent and making extensive optimizations, and redeveloped based on the system kernel, only to find out in the end that this thing was beyond saving.

The only option was to turn around and spend a huge amount of R&D funds to rebuild the system from the ground up.

If you want to pursue "autonomous driving, automotive-grade control, and multi-screen interaction", then "Linux kernel" is the only choice.

This is a common case in the industry.

Xu Yi could only offer one comment:
Android cars!!
...

of course.

Android mobile phone systems have been deeply optimized by various manufacturers for so many years. Even a lousy version has been transformed and made unique, which is more than enough to meet people's electronic entertainment needs.

However, the situation is different in the field of intelligent vehicle systems. If we consider automotive-grade safety and control response, the requirements for "inter-process communication" are extremely demanding.

In addition to its advantages such as "real-time response and full-stack controllability", the "Linux kernel" has become a must-have option.

……

Xu Yi's office.

"Mr. Xu, we've finally got the relevant talent information that meets your requirements..."

Fang Ziqiang had some reservations about Xu Yi's recent bizarre demands for talent.

Currently, finding a leading talent capable of leading a team to develop intelligent vehicle systems is more difficult than finding a top talent for mobile phone system development.

After all, the mobile phone industry has gradually entered a talent pool market, so there are still options for poaching talent.

Those who can lead a team to develop intelligent vehicle systems must at least be full-stack experts who are proficient in "CAN bus", "Linux kernel", and "automotive-grade standard ISO 26262".

The circle of such talents is narrow, and they are basically not available in the market. Only vertical headhunting companies that focus on automotive electronics and automotive electronics suppliers have access to them.

and so.

Finding the right person is quite difficult.

Fortunately, the power of money came into play in time.

Xu Yi took the documents and looked at them:

Zhao Yang, 37 years old, is currently the head of the vehicle infotainment system at GAC R&D Center. He led the development of the GAC Trumpchi GS4/GS8 vehicle infotainment system from scratch and participated in ISO 26262 functional safety certification...

After reading the information, Xu Yi's eyes lit up slightly.

If he remembers correctly, the infotainment system of the GAC Trumpchi GS4 is entirely based on the "Linux kernel".

This person has experience leading the development of the GAC Trumpchi GS4's in-vehicle infotainment system from scratch, so he is more than qualified to serve as the head of R&D for their Xingchen Automotive's first-generation in-vehicle infotainment system.

"Old Fang, you've worked hard these past few days. Don't worry, we definitely won't treat you unfairly."

"What's the current situation with this person? Can we bring him over as soon as possible...?"

After some reassurance, Fang Ziqiang finally breathed a sigh of relief and gave a slight smile.

"We were lucky, we stumbled upon this person by chance. He's already considering leaving, but he's not happy with his current position and wants to switch to WM Motor to lead the development of the vehicle's infotainment system..."

WM Motor?

Upon hearing this name, Xu Yi's expression couldn't remain composed for a moment.

……

　There will be another chapter updated tonight.

　　Regarding the update issue, I've been updating with eight or nine thousand words every day since the book was released. I write from morning till night, and I also have to do research. I made up for the chapter I missed the day before yesterday the next day. To be honest, I've really tried my best...

　　You can also see this by looking at the number of words updated and the time.
　　Sometimes it's not that I'm being lazy, but my sleep schedule is really disrupted, so I can't adjust it, but I will still ensure that I update on the same day.

　　I've seen some people say the update frequency is poor, and the possibility of it being abandoned is indeed a bit difficult to bear...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)