Reborn in 2011, 985 missing from two copies

Chapter 620 TSMC Lao Zhang: Let me come to your house and beg Wang Yi for forgiveness?
"How could this happen? Could it be that Apple is going to completely abandon TSMC?"

Zhang broke out in a cold sweat: "Huawei rejected us, and Apple also rejected us. How could this happen?"

"I don't know either. Is it because the price offered by Samsung was too low that made Apple completely give up on us?" said the subordinate.

Lao Zhang frowned and said, "It's possible. In this way, you can find a way to find out what kind of agreement Apple has reached with Samsung."

"it is good."

After hanging up the phone, Lao Zhang was restless and quickly convened a high-level meeting: "Two bad news."

"Huawei rejected our 16nm process."

"We were also turned down by Apple!"

"???"

"!!!"

"how so!"

Everyone in the room was stunned and full of disbelief.

"Damn it! Damn it! When has TSMC ever been treated like this?"

"That's right. TSMC used to represent the world's most advanced and mature chip technology. Every year, Apple, Qualcomm, and Huawei begged us to manufacture chips for them. Why is it so aggrieved?"

"Well, you said it before, but that was all in the past. Isn't Samsung surpassing us now?"

"It's one time, it's another time!"

"But it's still not right. Apple rejected us and chose Samsung's 14nm process, but why would Huawei reject us? Will they continue to use Xingyi Technology's 28nm next year?"

"It's possible. After all, Huawei HiSilicon started only a short time ago and has limited R&D capabilities. Even if they were given 16 nanometers, they might not be able to design such a high-specification chip."

"Yes, I estimate that Huawei's 16 nanometer chips will not be available until at least 2016. They will still be using 28 nanometer chips next year, and Xingyi Technology will continue to manufacture them."

"What about Apple? With their huge scale, don't they always have a dual-supplier strategy? Will they feel at ease if they outsource all the manufacturing to Samsung?"

"This is what I don't understand the most. Huawei's R&D is slow, so it's normal for them to reject our 16nm technology. Why did Apple also reject it?"

"According to Apple's style, the total number of orders for A9 chips is expected to be 1.2 million. Even if 3600% is given to Samsung, million will be left for TSMC. How can they not give us a single one?"

"This is unreasonable."

"Yes, it's totally irrational. Why is that?"

Old Zhang was also confused.

I couldn't figure it out, so I waited for another two days, but still got a cold shoulder.

Lao Zhang couldn't calm down anymore and couldn't help but call Cook late at night in the east:

"Mr. Cook, I'm sorry to bother you, it's really something important."

Cook frowned, but thinking that TSMC's overall strength was still stronger than Samsung's, and that it was very likely that the next generation would make a comeback, he still patiently said, "That's what you said, Mr. Zhang."

Zhang heaved a sigh of relief and said, "It's like this. Samsung Semiconductor gave up the 20nm process and jumped directly to the 14nm process. This is how they barely got ahead of us, but not by much. And they plagiarized a lot of TSMC's core technologies!"

"You know Lao Liang, right? He was the technical director of TSMC before. Now he has joined Samsung, which is why Samsung developed the 14nm process ahead of schedule."

"We sued Lao Liang and Samsung and won the first trial. The second trial will not be a problem. Lao Liang will leave Samsung soon and will not be able to continue to serve Samsung!"

Cook understood what Lao Zhang said:

First, Samsung’s R&D capabilities are very average and it has plagiarized a large amount of TSMC’s core technologies.

Second, Samsung’s 14nm and other cutting-edge core technologies all rely on Mr. Liang.

Third, Liang lost the lawsuit and is about to leave Samsung. Without Liang, Samsung's next 10nm process will be difficult to produce. TSMC will proceed smoothly.

Fourth, if Apple wants to develop high-end technology in the future, it still has to rely on TSMC in the 10nm field! Therefore, you have to think carefully about who to give the A9 chip orders to and how to allocate them next year.

In just a few short sentences, the facts are stated, the truth is made clear, and there is even a bit of muscle-flexing.

Cook couldn't help but sit up straight.

He knew that Lao Zhang was not exaggerating and what he said was true.

TSMC has two brushes.

"So, Mr. Zhang, what do you mean?" Cook kicked the ball back.

"Mr. Cook, TSMC's 16nm process will be fully put into production in the second half of next year. It can be used first for Apple's A9 chip. I wonder if we can get the A9 chip order..."

Cook frowned. It turned out that he was here for the A9 chip order. "I'm sorry, Mr. Zhang. We have already given the A9 chip order for next year to Samsung. They will be able to mass produce 14nm chips at the beginning of next year. We need time. I'm really sorry."

Damn! Samsung is so fast! Old Zhang's face changed drastically:

"Mr. Cook, Apple has always adopted a dual-supplier strategy to prevent a supply crisis. Although a large portion of your A9 chip orders have been given to Samsung, you can still give us a portion. Not too much, even a small portion will be fine."

This attitude is already very low.

This has never happened before at TSMC.

Previously, TSMC represented the world's most advanced mobile chip technology, and Apple and Qualcomm were begging for it.

Wherever Lao Zhang goes, he is always arrogant, but he has never been so servile as to be like this.

Thinking of the subsequent cooperation, Cook sighed: "When will TSMC be able to mass-produce A9 in the second half of next year?"

"August, no, July will do, I promise!"

"July?" Cook fell into deep thought, finding it difficult to make a decision for a moment.

Seeing Cook's hesitation, Zhang said decisively: "Mr. Cook, we at TSMC are not greedy. We only need an order of 9 million A chips!"

"How much?" Cook's mouth twitched.

"Forty million." Zhang said with a smile, "That's one-third of the total volume of Apple's A9 chips. According to iPhone sales, iPhone 6S and 6s plus will easily sell 1.2 million units worldwide. We only need one-third, and the remaining 8000 million will go to Samsung."

Lao Zhang felt that he had already made a huge concession and Cook had no reason to refuse.

Unexpectedly, Cook's face changed drastically and his tone became angry:
"Mr. Zhang, we don't have that many orders for A9 chips. The total order we placed with Samsung is only 6000 million! You can look at other customers."

"Only 6000 million in total?"

Lao Zhang was stunned and wanted to say something else: "Mr. Cook...

But on the other end of the phone, Cook had already hung up angrily.

"???"

Lao Zhang was confused: "Cook is angry? He was so angry that he hung up the phone?"

"What did I say wrong?"

"What do you mean A9 doesn't have that many orders, only 6000 million for Samsung?"

"How can this be?"

"Normally, the total A9 order is 1.2 million units, 9000 million units go to Samsung and 3000 million units go to TSMC. What's wrong?"

"Wait, A9 doesn't have that many chip orders..."

Repeating Cook's words, Lao Zhang suddenly realized and his expression became ugly:
"Shit! How could I have forgotten about this?!"

“The Apple of today is no longer the Apple of the past!”

“The iPhone sales volume now is no longer what it was before!”

"Based on the previous momentum, it will be no problem for iPhone 6S and plus to exceed 1.2 million units in total sales, and the A9 chip will also start at 1.2 million units."

"But now the iPhone has been severely impacted by the Xingyi phone, and Apple's sales have dropped sharply. The iPhone 6S plus, let alone 1.2 million units, may not even reach 6000 million units."

“No wonder only 6000 million were given to Samsung!”

"No wonder Cook is so angry!"

"Mad, forget it."

"Oh, I'm so stupid!"

Old Zhang figured everything out and his expression became very ugly.

Apple is in this situation already, but Zhang Yimou still said that Apple can sell 1.2 million units and needs 4000 million orders. Isn't this a poke in Cook's lungs?

No wonder Cook was angry. He must have thought that I was deliberately mocking Apple.

Sure enough, after hanging up the phone, Cook was furious:

"It's amazing! Even TSMC has jumped out to mock us? It's really like a tiger in plain land being bullied by a dog! Fuck!"

"Isn't it because we gave all the chip orders to Samsung that Zhang is mocking me like this?"

"Fake!"

"Fake!"

Cook was so angry that his hands began to tremble: "Not only will next year's A9 chip be given to Samsung, but also the A9X chip orders for iPad Pro will be given to Samsung!"

The vice president agreed: "This is perfect. If we add them together, it will be easier to negotiate the price with Samsung. If we separate them, it will be difficult to negotiate the price."

Cook nodded and said, "Yes, it's a different time now. In the past, we could sell more than 6000 million mobile phones and mass-produce more than million chips. Even if Samsung and TSMC placed orders, we could maintain more than million chips per side. With such a large volume, it's no problem to negotiate prices."

"But now we are being severely impacted by Xingyi mobile phones, and they have also achieved internationalization. This year's iPhone 6 series is unlikely to sell well, let alone next year's iPhone 6S series? The sales will definitely be worse."

"Don't even mention 1.2 million units sold per year. At most, 6000 million units, that's only 6000 million A9 chips. And that's not just one year, but the sales for the next two years."

"With such a small sales volume of 6000 million chips, it would be easier to negotiate the price if the chips were sold to one company. But if the chips were sold to two companies, it would be even harder to negotiate the price."

"Yes, the situation has changed." The vice president also felt deeply moved.

The more Cook thought about it, the angrier he got: "I just didn't expect that this guy Zhang would mock us for Apple's plummeting sales!"

The vice president couldn't help but ask, "Chairman, could it be that Zhang didn't think so much? He didn't expect our sales to drop so seriously?" Cook laughed coldly, "Humph! Didn't think so much? He's not a fool, how could he not understand these? I think Zhang is just angry that we gave the A9 chip order to Samsung, and he deliberately said this to mock us!"

"It must be so!"

"I guess, this guy is a piece of shit!" the vice president echoed.

At this time, Cook's phone rang again, it was still Lao Zhang calling.

But Cook just glanced at it and rejected it.

The corner of Lao Zhang's mouth twitched: "..."

"God knows, I never thought Apple's sales would drop so quickly. The orders for next year's A9 chips are so small!"

Old Zhang looked a little unhappy.

If he had thought about this, he would not have said it like that, causing Cook to think that he was mocking Apple and get furious...

But unfortunately, it was too late.

The next day, Zhang came to TSMC and held another high-level meeting:

"I have something to say. Apple's chip orders for next year are scrapped. Forget about it."

Hearing this, everyone changed color: "How could this happen?"

"Chairman, even if Samsung takes the lion's share, 8000 million A9 chip orders, can't we just take the smaller share, 4000 million?"

"Yes, Chairman, Huawei is in trouble, and even Apple A9 is in trouble. We still have Qualcomm's 20nm Snapdragon 810 to support us in the first half of next year, but we will be left with nothing in the second half of the year?"

Lao Zhang was somewhat helpless: "We have overlooked a fact. Facing the severe impact of Xingyi mobile phones after their internationalization, Apple is no longer the same Apple as it was back then. iPhone sales have also been cut in half. The total number of orders for the A9 chip from its launch to its discontinuation of production was at most 6000 million. That's all, and it was all given to Samsung. How could we get a share?"

"This……"

Everyone was completely silent, and a little confused:
"The iPhone sold more than 1 million units last year, but next year it's so bad? Only 6000 million units left? That's impossible, right?"

Lao Zhang waved his hands and said, "Nothing is impossible. Apple is just so lame right now. The annual sales of iPhone 6S and iPhone 6s plus are estimated to be only 4000 million units, and by the time they are discontinued, the total sales will be at most 6000 million units. That's why there are so few orders for A9 chips, and they all went to Samsung. We have no share."

"Oh, Apple is such a loser. So we're done for next year, right?"

"It's not just next year that's over, I'm worried there will be problems this year as well."

"What do you mean?"

"This year, the Xingyi mobile phone has gone global and is impacting Apple in all aspects. Not only will the orders for the A9 chip for next year be cut in half, but the orders for the A8 chip for this year will also plummet, right?"

“This…” Everyone’s color changed.

"The A8 is manufactured by TSMC. If the order volume plummets, won't we have a hard time this year?"

"Yes, that's it. We're in big trouble!"

Zhang's face darkened. "According to previous experience, Apple should have placed a second batch of chip orders by now. But this year, apart from the first batch of 7000 million A8 orders, Apple did not place a second batch of orders."

"That's true. I was wondering why Apple didn't increase orders. It turns out that the sales of iPhone 5s are too poor, and Apple is not optimistic about the sales of iPhone 6 and plus that will be launched in the second half of the year."

"Yes, in theory, iPhone 6 and plus should sell 1.5 million units a year without any pressure, and they sold 2 to 5000 million units before they were discontinued. But now, I'm afraid that annual sales of 8000 million units would be good, and million units before they were discontinued would be a miracle."

"Next year's iPhone 6S series will be even worse, with sales dropping by another 20%!"

"Apple is such a waste! What should we do with TSMC if they reduce their production volume? We spent so much money on developing 20 nanometer technology, and now we only make these chips for Apple? We can't even make back our investment!"

"Apple is failing, and Qualcomm is failing too. The number of orders for the Snapdragon 810 chip is not large, which results in insufficient orders for us and difficulty in making a profit."

"This year's 20nm process is not bad, at least it has the support of A8 and Snapdragon 810. Even if it doesn't make money, it can still make back some of the investment. But what about next year's 16nm process? Even the chip orders are gone, and we have lost everything."

"Alas, this is a big problem. Samsung will have orders from Apple and its own chip orders next year, so it can still live comfortably, but we at TSMC will be miserable."

"Next year, Apple and Huawei won't get chips, Qualcomm won't live up to expectations, it's all over."

"If we had known this, we shouldn't have offended Xingyi Technology. Now the mobile phone with the highest sales volume is not Apple, but Xingyi. The mobile phone with the highest number of mobile phone chip orders is also Xingyi!"

"We can avoid offending Xingyi Technology and win Xingyi Technology's 16-nanometer chip order next year. They can't produce 16-nanometer chips themselves, so they can just let us do the OEM. But the relationship between the two parties is really..."

"Alas! Ever since we listened to Qualcomm's words last time and stopped supplying chips to Xingyi Technology, we have completely torn our relationship apart. Next year, Xingyi Technology would rather use Samsung's 14nm than TSMC's 16nm!"

"It would be great if we could take over Xingyi Technology. Our 16-nanometer process could bring in orders worth 1.5 million or even 2 million!"

"If I had known this today, why would I have done it in the first place?"

Hearing these words, Lao Zhang's face became extremely gloomy, and he was filled with regret in his heart.

Who could have thought that Qualcomm, a big player that was previously optimistic, would turn out to be a failure and see its order volume plummet.

The small giant Xingyi Technology, which was not optimistic about the future, has become the absolute overlord and a huge customer!

If TSMC had known that Xingyi Technology was so powerful, it would never have given up Xingyi Technology even if it had given up Qualcomm.

But unfortunately, it was too late and it was all over.

Old Zhang was very melancholy and felt extremely regretful.

The vice president could not help but say, "A broken mirror can be mended. Next year, Apple will launch a 14nm chip manufactured by Samsung. Xingyi Technology needs the same technology to compete with Apple. Although we had an unpleasant quarrel before, as long as we bow our heads, take the initiative to ease the relationship, and give up some of our interests, Xingyi Technology will probably be willing to give us the order for next year's Kunpeng flagship processor."

When the others heard this, their eyes lit up and they all spoke up:
"This is a solution, a very good one. If it works, we will surely win orders for chips starting at 1 million, and our 16-nanometer process will be stable."

"It's difficult. You know Mr. Wang's temper. He stopped supplying Xingyi Technology last time. How could he possibly cooperate with us again now?"

"Alas, this is indeed difficult, but there is hope. The price has to be high enough, the OEM price has to be low enough, and the sincerity has to be high enough. And the person who bows his head has to be important enough to give Mr. Wang enough face, otherwise Mr. Wang will really ignore us."

"That makes sense. The price is easy to talk about. Our 16nm process is half a year behind Samsung's. We have no choice but to lower the price enough. But the person who lowers his head must be important enough to satisfy President Wang, which is difficult."

"Yes, who has the weight to satisfy Director Wang? Could it be..."

As they spoke, everyone looked at Lao Zhang.

"..." Old Zhang's mouth twitched, and he wanted to curse in his heart: "You mean, you want me, Zhang, the chairman of TSMC, to personally apologize to Wang Yi?"

Everyone nodded in unison.

"Damn it! You guys are crazy!" Lao Zhang's face was extremely ugly: "I don't want to save face?"

"Mr. Zhang, which is more important, face or substance? Which is more important, you or the future of TSMC?"

"Yes, Chairman, for the future of TSMC, please make a sacrifice!"

"I..." The corners of Lao Zhang's mouth twitched.

"Chairman, if we can't get the order from Xingyi Technology, TSMC will have no orders for 16nm in the second half of next year. You don't want to get nothing after spending so much money on the 16nm process, right?"

"The most important thing is, if 16 nanometers don't make money, where will the money come from to continue researching and developing 10 nanometers, or even 7 nanometers?"

"We are already behind Samsung in 16nm. If we don't have enough money to maintain subsequent research and development, 10nm and 7nm will continue to lag behind. By then, the high-end will be suppressed by Samsung, the mid-end will be suppressed by Xingyi Semiconductor, and the low-end will be impacted by SMIC. Then TSMC will be finished."

"Alas, if it really comes to that, it's all over."

"Chairman, the only one who can save TSMC right now is Xingyi Technology! No, only you!"

"I..." Lao Zhang was speechless for a moment. He was unwilling in his heart, but he couldn't refute it.

As everyone has said, the only one who can save TSMC and give TSMC a super large order now is Xingyi Technology!

Apple has turned to Samsung, Qualcomm will still be at 20 nanometers next year, and Huawei has also refused to cooperate, and its scale is not large.

The only company that can place large orders of hundreds of millions of 16nm chips with TSMC is Xingyi Technology!

This is how to do?
"Do you really want me, Zhang, to apologize to Mr. Wang in person?" Old Zhang couldn't help but speak.

"Chairman, a real man can bend and stretch. Even Han Xin could endure the humiliation under his crotch, let alone such a small matter."

"That's right. For the development and future of TSMC, it is acceptable for the chairman to make some sacrifices."

Even the major shareholder spoke up: "Mr. Zhang, you don't want TSMC to have no orders for its 16nm process next year, suffer heavy losses, and cause the stock price to plummet, right?"

"I..." Lao Zhang was speechless.

Another major shareholder's expression turned even more hostile: "If you ignore TSMC's future for the sake of face, we will not rule out a large-scale reduction of holdings!"

Upon hearing this, Lao Zhang's face changed drastically.

He is the chairman of TSMC and the soul of the company, but he cannot cover the sky with one hand.

If this matter is not handled properly, several major shareholders will take advantage of TSMC's large number of orders and good market conditions this year to sell off their holdings in large quantities. Then TSMC will be ruined and its stock price will collapse!
This year it will collapse!
If TSMC’s stock price collapses this year, it will collapse even more miserably next year!
This is not possible!

Lao Zhang took a deep breath, his face gloomy to the extreme: "Okay, I will call Mr. Wang in person to apologize and ask him to give us the 16nm chip order!"

"That's right, a real man should be able to bend and stretch. Lao Zhang, you are that!" A major shareholder gave a thumbs up.

Others also spoke up: "With President Zhang here, TSMC has a bright future!"

"Yes, the chairman is the pillar of TSMC."

"Once we win the order of hundreds of millions of chips from Xingyi Technology, TSMC will be stable and the crisis next year will be gone. It's all thanks to the chairman."

But another major shareholder said quietly: "Lao Zhang, since you have decided to apologize to Director Wang in person, I think you must show your appreciation."

Lao Zhang frowned: "What do you mean?"

The man continued, "Mr. Zhang, your apology over the phone is not sincere. Mr. Wang may not recognize it."

"???" Old Zhang was furious: "What do you mean? You want me to go to the capital, to Xingyi Technology, and beg Wang Yi in person to apologize? Beg for a large chip order?"

"Too deceiving!"

"Too deceiving!"

Old Zhang was so angry that he rolled up his sleeves:

"Calling Wang Yi to apologize is my bottom line. Do you still want me to go to the capital in person and beg for an apology? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

(End of this chapter)