Chapter 328: The Business Genius Worth 50 Billion US Dollars! The Tian Gong T100 Chip!

At dawn the next day, the sky turned fish-belly white, and the tinkling of wind chimes reached his ears.

Chen Yansen slowly opened his eyes; a whiff of milky scent drifted into his nose.

In the master bedroom of over thirty square meters, besides an 1.8-meter soft large bed, there was only a vanity and a coat rack; the furnishings were simple and orderly.

A lace nightgown with extremely little fabric lay quietly on the walnut floor.

Last night, to celebrate Pinba's single-day sales breaking 2 billion, Mr. Chen had been invited to Ms. Ye's home to drink sweet soup.

It must be said that Ye Qiuping indeed had a talent for making soups and small sweet drinks; initially somewhat awkward, her skills had now become increasingly exquisite, making Mr. Chen unable to extricate himself.

Chen Yansen sat up on the bed, reached for the phone on the nightstand; it was 4:57, and outside the window it was still gray and hazy.

Ye Qiuping lay on her side, the thin air-conditioning quilt covering only her lower abdomen.

Sichuan girls have fair skin; Master Ye was no exception. Her lower abdomen was flat with no excess flesh, and the feel of touching it was as delicate as silk.

Although he had slept less than three hours, Chen Yansen was full of spirit with no sign of fatigue; he put on his slippers and walked toward the living room.

The autumn breeze was slightly cool, blowing the wind chimes on the balcony to ring clearly.

Chen Yansen plopped onto the sofa, took out his phone, and opened a scanned version of "Battery Technology: Materials and Components."

Time passed second by second; by the time the first light of dawn appeared and a faint ray of sunlight shone in, he had already finished reading dozens of reference books on energy storage and conversion.

Afterwards, Chen Yansen opened the Toutiao app and quickly browsed the hot news from the past two days.

"'Search Engine Service Self-Discipline Convention' Signed, Will Effectively Curb Malicious Competition Between Enterprises!"

"360 Sues Qian Du for Abusing the Robots Protocol to Monopolize the Market; First Instance Verdict: Zhou Hongyi Loses!"

In Chen Yansen's view, Zhou Hongyi had not lost; after a game of strategy, 360 Search's market share successfully jumped from 0 to 8.7%, surpassing Sogou and leaping to become the second-largest search engine service provider.

One could say he lost face but won the substance.

Lingxi Search's market share had reached 6.1%, ranking fourth in the industry, with only a step's distance remaining between it and Sogou.

From August to October, in just two months, Qian Du had lost nearly 15% of its market share in the search field.

"Gome Integrates Kubo Network and Gome Online, Accelerating E-commerce Business Synergy, and Officially Joining the Double Eleven Promotion!"

"Mango TV Begins Preparations for 'I Am a Singer'; Music Variety Shows Heat Up."

"Yamazon Launches Global Store Opening Plan, Thereby Attracting Cross-border Sellers!"

"Didi Bike Accelerates City Sharing Plan; A Touchstone of National Quality?"

Chen Yansen clicked into the last news item.

Relying on a 50 million investment from the Innovation Factory, plus a 199 yuan riding deposit per account and a phased payment supplier settlement model, Didi Bike had already deployed 1,000 shared bikes in the Yanjing area.

When accepting an interview with "IT Era Weekly," Cheng Wei claimed that Didi Bike's registered users exceeded ten thousand, operations were in good condition, and they planned to expand deployment to 10,000 bikes in November and increase to 30,000 in December.

Chen Yansen smiled and did not take it to heart.

Starting early does not necessarily mean arriving at the finish line first.

At this moment, Ye Qiuping in the room slowly woke up; not seeing Chen Yansen at first glance, she hurriedly put on her nightgown and walked out of the bedroom.

Seeing him leaning against the sofa playing with his phone, she finally breathed a sigh of relief and walked over with small, shuffling steps.

"Boss, you slept at two o'clock last night and got up at eight o'clock this morning; did you get enough sleep?"

Ye Qiuping squatted half-way in front of Chen Yansen, looked up at him, and asked in a gentle voice.

The neckline was slightly open, revealing a patch of snow-white skin; she knew that from Chen Yansen's perspective it would be fully visible, but she insisted on doing so.

Chen Yansen's lips curled slightly; he read her little scheme, immediately put down his phone, scooped up Ye Qiuping in one grasp, and walked straight toward the large bed in the master bedroom, saying with a smile, "Indeed, I didn't get enough sleep; I need to take another nap."

Not until ten o'clock in the morning did Chen Yansen come downstairs refreshed, sit in the rear seat of the Ghost car, and instruct Xiao Li to return to the company.

Along the way, one could occasionally see Yunsu Express couriers in gray work uniforms, Kuai Pao delivery riders in orange windbreakers, and ride-hailing cars with the slogan "Kuai De Dache" printed on their bodies.

At this time, it was only late October 2012!

Under his influence, the mobile internet application ecosystem grew increasingly rich; the three major operators, Mobile, Unicom, and Telecom, all launched small-scale TD-LTE 4G network tests to pave the way for subsequent commercial use.

For this, he had also asked Zhao Maolin about the release date of the 4G license; Old Zhao said with certainty that it would be no later than next year.

After all, anyone with eyes could see that the tide of the mobile internet era was unstoppable.

Half an hour later, the car drove into the Science Park; Chen Yansen got out, stepped forward, and walked into Building No. 9.

Passing the cold drink cabinet, he casually took a bottle of freshly squeezed mango juice, then took the elevator to the office on the top floor.

Since today was Sunday, except for a few scattered employees working overtime, most of the office area was empty.

Including Pinba, only the duty and customer service team members were present.

Turning on the computer and logging into the email, the first message was a product document sent by Mike Keller, Chief Scientist of the Chip Design Department.

The content included various core technical indicators, such as computing power, power consumption, process technology, and interface standards, as well as core architecture, algorithm models, cost estimates, and development cycle information.

Having joined the company only a week ago, he had completed the product requirement organization for the AI chip and transformed it into rigorous technical specifications; his strong capability was evident.

Mike Keller was a graduate of an Ivy League university; fifteen years ago he joined AMD, deeply participating in the R&D of the Athlon K7 processor, later becoming the chief architect of the K8; nine years later he joined Apple, leading the team to successively develop the A4 and A5 chips.

In Apple's Chip Department, his rank and status were second only to the head, Johny Srouji; his skill level and industry influence were equivalent to those of a senior principal engineer at Gao Tong.

However, that was all in the past; now he was the Chief Scientist of the Chip Department at Chengzi Technology, the direct superior of Wu Shengyu, and responsible for the development work of the Tian Gong T100 Artificial Intelligence Chip. When Old Wu learned that the new leader was Mike Keller, he was completely stunned!

Mike Keller was also a very famous figure in the North American chip field; perhaps if he endured another five to eight years, he would have the opportunity to be promoted to Chief Scientist, or even become the head of Apple's Chip Department.

Was the other person crazy, traveling thousands of miles to work in Huaguo?

What was he after?

Wu Shengyu could not figure it out no matter how he thought!

He could not understand it at all!

Little did he know that having lived in the Lighthouse Country for nearly twenty years, his sudden resignation from Gao Tong and determined return to his home country appeared equally extremely strange in the eyes of his family.

Chen Yansen dragged the mouse and quickly scrolled the document to the last page; including the main chip, memory and storage, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, microphone, and other modules, the material cost was around 20 US dollars.

It looked higher than the procurement cost of the currently used TI OMAP3630, but the Tian Gong T100 integrated the CPU, NPU, DSP, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth communication, and audio codecs onto a single chip, saving at least 50% of the cost.

By then, the material and production costs could be reduced to around 200 yuan, and the selling price of the Alexa (Mo Si) smart speaker could be lowered to 89 US dollars (499 Hua yuan), or even 79 US dollars (399 Hua yuan), thereby significantly increasing shipment volume.

He knew Amazon had launched the Echo smart voice assistant feature and planned to develop a smart speaker product based on Alexa, but he had calculated that even with strict supply chain control, Amazon's material cost per unit would not be lower than 70 US dollars.

Additionally, one must consider production, labor, transportation, sales, and after-sales costs; the selling price would absolutely not be lower than 150 US dollars!

Yet Chen Yansen was not worried at all!

Because by the time the Echo smart speaker went on sale, the Tiangong T100 chip would have long been released; if Bezos dared to sell it for 149 US dollars, he dared to sell it for 89 US dollars, treating the smart speaker as a mass-market commodity.

Meanwhile.

The Double Eleven promotion battle among Tmall, Pinduoduo, and JD intensified; everyone employed various tactics to gain traffic and customers, ranging from simple and brutal red packet activities to endless category coupons.

A Taobao user complained on Weibo, saying that without making a single purchase, his account had gained over a hundred coupons, from store coupons to product coupons and category coupons, simply too numerous to count.

JD users had similar complaints; coupons were as numerous as the platform's tricks, forcing them to stay up late every day snatching coupons, fearing they would buy at a high price.

Only Pinduoduo was an outlier, mostly offering subsidies with no thresholds, rarely flooding users with coupons.

When they did issue them occasionally, users could sense the full sincerity, unlike the coupons from JD, Suning, and Taobao, which were filled with all sorts of restrictions.

At two in the afternoon, Suning was scolded onto the trending search.

The reason was that the usage scope for the "Zero Yuan Purchase" activity's return coupons was shrinking; most small appliances were out of stock, leaving only food, alcohol, and cosmetics, mostly white-label brands, which failed to spark interest in placing orders.

Yet Suning refused to restock for a long time!

Some phones, computers, or home appliances purchased by users had arrived; if returned, users had to bear the shipping costs themselves. Only then did the tricked users realize the situation and flew into a rage, cursing loudly.

The complaint hotline of the Jin Ling Market Supervision Association was overwhelmed!

Seeing this, Liu Qiangdong immediately spoke sarcastically on Weibo: "Certain competitors, if you can't afford to run an activity, don't run it, but what is this deception of users?"

Huang Zheng was even harsher than "Handsome Dong," joining forces with Yunsu Express to distribute 10-yuan no-threshold express coupons specifically to Suning users.

Users only needed to upload a screenshot of their Suning return on the Pinduoduo activity page.

The implication was clear: feel free to apply for refunds and returns boldly!

"Damn it! Does Huang Zheng have a sickness? Is this how one does business?"

Zhang Jindong, upon seeing Liu Qiangdong's and Huang Zheng's Weibo posts, turned pale then green, wishing he could smash both of them with a brick.

He instinctively reached for his phone to call Chen Yansen.

The relationship between Suning and Pinduoduo had always been good; Chengzi Technology had opened a flagship store on Suning, and Suning Electronics had also entered the Pinduoduo Shangcheng, yet Huang Zheng gave no face at all. What did this mean?

Did they no longer want to cooperate with Suning?

But then he thought, without Chen Yansen's nod, would Huang Zheng and Liao Wei dare to do this?

To put it plainly, the one who truly wanted to steal Suning's customers was still that son of a bitch Chen Yansen; calling him would only be asking for humiliation.

In a fit of anger, Zhang Jindong wanted to terminate the commercial cooperation with Pinduoduo, but he hesitated for a long time, unable to make up his mind.

First, he couldn't bear to part with the traffic and sales output of the Pinduoduo Shangcheng;

Second, he feared Chen Yansen's retaliation.

Facing Chen Yansen's "revenge for every slight" personality, Zhang Jindong had to be Not taken seriously; what if Pinduoduo concentrated its efforts on large home appliances? Would Suning still be able to survive?

Ten minutes later, Zhang Jindong let out a long sigh, then narrowed his eyes and cursed, "Could it be that Liu Qiangdong truly thinks I fear him?"

Having said that, he immediately summoned the head of Suning's E-commerce Department to redeploy the Double Eleven promotion rhythm and launched a Super Group Buying activity targeting JD's advantageous categories.

The products included 3C digital, large home appliances, and small appliances, and on the price tags, it was blatantly marked with phrases like "200 yuan cheaper than JD," "140 yuan cheaper than JD," and "270 yuan cheaper than JD."

At first, users didn't believe it, but after copying the titles to compare prices on JD, they discovered the data was true!

The netizens' stance instantly shifted!

After all, Liu Qiangdong had solemnly claimed that "JD's large home appliances make no profit for three years," yet right now, Suning's Super Group Buying was tens to hundreds of yuan cheaper than JD.

Users instantly felt a rage of being fooled!

The comment section of "Handsome Dong's" Weibo quickly fell, with netizens cursing all of Liu Qiangdong's friends and family.

Actually, the reason Suning's Super Group Buying prices were so low was entirely due to platform subsidies.

Liu Qiangdong had no way to explain his bitterness; he had struggled up from the offline, grassroots level and knew well that human hearts are unpredictable, but fortunately, the response was relatively simple.

"Handsome Dong" waved his hand and chose to follow Suning's Super Group Buying activity; for any products of the same brand and model, the price would be ten yuan cheaper than Suning's.

The netizens' anger came quickly and went even faster!

Three minutes ago, the "Deadbeat Dong" and "Big Qiangzi" in their mouths immediately returned to "President Liu," "Brother Dong," and "Price Butcher."

Liu Qiangdong finally saw clearly; users had no loyalty whatsoever, and it was hard to keep them.

For a moment, he sat in his office lost in thought, secretly pondering operational strategies to enhance user stickiness and retention.

On the other side.

A business financing news item appeared on the Yahoo homepage: Music streaming giant Spotify had completed a 140 million US dollar Series E financing yesterday, with a post-money valuation of 2.8 billion US dollars!

The content detailed the background of Senlian Capital and the legendary business career of its founder, Chen Yansen.

Twenty years old, a junior student, net worth in the tens of billions; these three keywords combined were heat and traffic!

On Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook, a batch of bloggers even appeared, specifically tallying Chen Yansen's net worth.

Pinduoduo valuation: 22 billion US dollars!

Chengzi Technology valuation: 20 billion US dollars!

Yunsu Express valuation: 18 billion US dollars!

Kuaide Taxi valuation: 3.5 billion US dollars!

Kuipao valuation: 2 billion US dollars!

Amap valuation: 1.2 billion US dollars!

Most companies that could be tallied had received financing, but for the valuations of holding subsidiaries like Chengzi Mobile Factory, Jinri Technology, and Weiyuanju Technology, North American bloggers could not find reliable data to support them.

Yet a simple calculation showed Chen Yansen's net worth exceeded 50 billion US dollars, immediately sparking heated discussion in the Land of the Lighthouse!

(End of Chapter)