After divorce, I can hear the voice of the future

Chapter 601 Apple Tax in the Automotive Industry

On the way to Zhongguancun, more news broke: Lotus will hold a new car launch event this Saturday.

A blurry photo of the car body makes it difficult to see the details, but the chassis and overall height indicate that it is a coupe.

"The old powerhouses still have a strong foundation; it seems they're being led by example."

While Lu Liang was amazed by Liu Qing's efficiency, he also realized that he was being used as a stepping stone.

Even the most poorly made new car project requires at least six months of preparation time.

This shows that Lotus had already decided on its first coupe, but no word of it had leaked out.

Seeing that Tian Shu has achieved good results, they plan to make a move and seize a portion of the market.

Although the market often compares the Tian Shu to the Maodou 3, there are still subtle differences between a coupe and a sedan.

Take Xu Daolai, a municipal cadre, as an example. He can buy a sedan, but he would never buy a sports car.

Therefore, strictly speaking, there are no products in the market that directly compete with Tian Shu.

Lotus's official announcement of its debut coupe is meant to give potential consumers another option.

Allowing them to wait and not rush into a decision will inevitably affect the subsequent sales of Tian Shu.

"This woman is really difficult to deal with, but then again, there's a difference between investing and gambling with your life."

Lu Liang smiled. In his opinion, the invasion of capital such as Ali Penguin and OV was nothing special.

Whether it's a partnership or a controlling stake, since it's not their own brand, they'll always hold back a few things, just like the difference between a biological son and an adopted son.

Unlike Lotus, which is managed by Liu Qing, Lotus is a brand that the Liu family has high hopes for and was wholly acquired by Lenovo in conjunction with Geely.

Since the 5G voting scandal, the label of "three outstanding members of one family" and "a family full of loyal and virtuous people" has become an indelible part of the Liu family.

Lenovo has also fallen from its pedestal as the number one domestic brand, with a large number of municipal orders being devoured by Xiaomi and Hasee.

They desperately need a spectacular comeback to prove to the market that Lenovo and the Liu family still hold sway.

Large capital groups and conglomerates are merely investing, but Lenovo is facing a matter of life and death.

They lost the battle with Didi.

If we lose this battle in the new energy sector, we will be completely dropped out of the top tier.

Once you go down there, what awaits you is an endless abyss. Helping someone in need is rare, but kicking someone when they're down is common.

After decades of reform and opening up, apart from emerging industries, most industries in China have become saturated.

If they eat one more bite, others will eat one less bite; if they eat one less bite, others will eat one more bite.

At 3 p.m., Lu Liang arrived at the SOHO Building and took the elevator to the 17th floor of Tianxing Technology.

The office area was lifeless, and everyone was in a heavy mood, a stark contrast to the energetic atmosphere of the last time.

After all, nearly 300 people left the company, and the HR department had spoken with each of them, hoping they would go to Suzhou.

They have already prepared workstations and dormitories for them, and the environment and welfare benefits have also been upgraded.

They understood why they had to go to Suzhou, but for various reasons, they did not want to and could not leave the capital.

So I felt conflicted, not knowing how headquarters would handle them afterwards.

Lu Liang arrived at the company, but did not appear immediately. Instead, he stood in the office and observed.

"President Lu, the current situation is indeed very tricky," Qin Siyuan said in a deep voice.

Hu Weiwei and other executives, including Wang Xiaofeng, went to Suzhou, leaving him to temporarily take charge of things in Beijing.

His suggestion was to assign them business trips, requiring them to travel back and forth four or five times a month; they would eventually agree.

If they don't accept business trips, or ultimately still disagree, then talent optimization can proceed.

Anyway, their system is already halfway to Level 3, and the new car has already been launched, so in the short term, all that's needed is maintenance.

There is ample time to recruit a new, younger, and more obedient team in Suzhou to continue the research and development work.

Lu Liang pondered for a moment, neither agreeing nor refusing, and asked, "In which month is this year's team building activity planned?"

“Normally in August or September,” Qin Siyuan replied. Last year, they organized one in mid-August.

"Let's move it to mid-May this year, preferably this weekend or next week, then I'll go and have a few days there."

Lu Liang sighed and said, "Have the HR department talk to them afterwards. If they still don't have 500 people, then execute your plan."

The company originally had 1421 employees, of whom 289 agreed and have already gone to Suzhou, leaving 1132 employees.

At least 211 more people need to go to Suzhou for the project to proceed normally.

Lu Liang was willing to give them another chance, but if they still didn't accept it, he would have to be firm.

After all, the reason these people dared to put up such a stubborn resistance was because of the headhunting contract they had signed.

Previously, they were all employees of big companies like Baidu and 360, who poached them with high-salary contracts of two or three years.

If the contract is terminated early, their previous years of service will be taken into account, which is at least one year's salary.

With so many people, it's a considerable expense, and it wouldn't sound good if word got out; it could easily give the impression of being used and discarded. "Yes, Mr. Lu." Qin Siyuan nodded and immediately contacted the finance director to apply for this year's team-building funds in advance.

Around 5 p.m., Lu Liang left the SOHO building and went to Li Auto, which was not far away.

"Mr. Lu, congratulations."

Li Xiang smiled broadly and offered his congratulations with clasped hands.

Since the Li Auto L9 participated in the Suzhou New Energy Vehicle Exhibition, it has received more than 9,000 orders in three days.

In the last half month, we've achieved sales of 3,000 units, and monthly sales should be able to stabilize at 6,000 units.

Although it's still a long way from profitability, this year is the most promising year of the past few years.

Perhaps, as the media has said, the past few years were all preparation, and this year is the real beginning of the new energy era.

He felt a sense of relief, like a daughter-in-law finally becoming a mother-in-law, knowing that at least raising funds for his ideal company wouldn't be so difficult in the future.

After all, a SUV costing nearly 500,000 yuan selling 6,000 units per month is enough to prove that focusing on family comfort is the right path.

"Congratulations." Lu Liang bowed slightly and asked with a smile, "What are your next plans? Financing, or going public?"

Despite the fact that both cars are now accepted by the market, venture capital valuations are only $68 billion, slightly more than NIO's.

Domestic and international capital markets still prefer hype; the two oil giants in the electric vehicle industry are full of imagination.

In contrast, idealism is too pragmatic, giving people the feeling that its potential is limited and its end can be seen at a glance.

"Let's raise funds first, and then postpone the IPO."

Li Xiang led Lu Liang to the R&D department, where a brand-new Tian Shu machine had been disassembled into pieces, and the main unit was having its data retrieved.

He observed Lu Liang's expression and said jokingly, "President Lu, you seem a bit unfair. Tian Shu's visual algorithm seems to be even more sophisticated than Ideal."

Is there a big difference?

Lu Liang looked bewildered, but a smile flashed in his eyes: "I don't know much about technology, so I might not be a good fit."

Li Xiang glanced at Lu Liang, but didn't expose him. Instead, he continued the conversation, saying, "Our colleagues in the engineering department believe that the reason for the incompatibility may be due to radar laser technology."

He glanced at the roof of the Tian Shu vehicle, where there was a slightly raised backpack. Tian Xing only opened the vehicle's infotainment system, and the vision technology was included in the system. As for radar, laser and other related technologies, they kept them all out of the public eye.

"I think so. I think I heard Engineer Zheng mention it once." Lu Liang squinted, the corners of his mouth gradually turning up.

There were three purposes for opening up the system at the beginning.

First, it accelerates industry development and simplifies car manufacturing.

Secondly, we hope to develop system algorithms by using driving data from our competitors.

Third, take advantage of the fact that everyone lacks the funds and energy for research and development to seize the market first.

At that time, Lu Liang had discussed the matter with Hu Weiwei, Wang Xiaofeng, and other senior management and technical executives of the company.

If one day their Tianxing car infotainment system achieves a high enough market share, how will the company generate profits?

Wang Xiaofeng's advice covered all aspects, from hardware to software to toll fees, leaving no stone unturned.

They also proposed a solution: when developing vehicle infotainment systems in the future, try to incorporate hardware technologies such as radar and lasers.

This renders cars that only have an in-vehicle infotainment system but lack radar and laser systems as "crippled" versions, unable to fully enjoy intelligent driving features.

As it turns out, they succeeded. The car lacked features such as LiDAR technology, high-precision map positioning, emergency steering assist, remote automatic parking, sentry mode, automatic exit from ramps, and automatic lane changing.

Of course, others can also configure third-party radar and laser technology like the Li Auto L9, but there will still be significant differences compared to their original factory-installed systems.

But this secret will soon no longer be a secret.

If Li Auto can disassemble the TianShu (天枢) and analyze why Tianxing's intelligent driving is not perfect, then NIO, WM Motor, Wuling, DeepBlue Voyah, Leapmotor, and Jifou can all do the same.

If they want to enter the mid-to-high-end market and want to promote their mastery of driver assistance functions, they will definitely have to find them unless they give up using Tianxing's in-vehicle infotainment system.

At that time, each car will have a small bulge.

Selling one for ten or twenty thousand yuan isn't too outrageous.

This only covers hardware revenue; there's also the revenue from the in-vehicle infotainment system's built-in software, such as audio and video content, for which an annual promotional fee must be paid.

They can also take a 20% cut from completed orders, similar to Apple's tax on mobile phones.

The seeds planted back then are now nearing harvest time.

It's better to buy than to make.

Not every company has the courage to develop its own research and development capabilities.

Even if they had the courage, the era of new energy has already begun, and they don't have time.

To catch this wave of opportunity and get a hot meal, you have to act fast.

Just like this year, in less than five and a half months, more than 20 new energy brands have been established.

　I'm back! Two more chapters tonight!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)