Rebirth 08: Rise from copycat phones

Chapter 360 AI Drone's First Flight

At Xiaojiang Technology's flight test site in the suburbs, Xu Shenxue, accompanied by Xiaojiang Technology's management team, saw a large drone in the prototype stage.

"This drone of ours is codenamed X14. It is our fourteenth manned drone design and the most successful one so far. It is the only one that has entered the prototype stage. The thirteen technical solutions before it were all terminated due to various technical defects!"
"The X14 project uses pure electric energy. It has a total of eight rotors, a maximum take-off weight of kilograms, a maximum load capacity of kilograms, a maximum range of kilometers, a cruising speed of kilometers, and a maximum speed of kilometers."

"At present, considering safety and other issues, the project is being developed based on a cargo version, which can carry 300 kilograms of cargo in the cargo yard, or it can be transported by hoisting!"

"The X14's flight is controlled by an intelligent driving system throughout the entire process. No manual remote control intervention is required. The operator only needs to set the take-off and landing points and other necessary operations. Of course, we have also added a remote control mode to ensure better control!"

"The entire flight control module is composed of an onboard intelligent driving module, a ground control module, and a Zhiyun ground-orbit satellite communication module. It can also integrate 3G or 4G and even future 5G base station intercommunication of ground operators."

"In the ground control module, a large intelligent driving center is responsible for handling control, processing surrounding data, and issuing flight instructions to the X14 drone."

"But the X14 drone's onboard intelligent flight module can also control the flight independently after leaving the ground command center, and has full autonomous flight capabilities!"

"At the same time, we have taken into account the manned version in the future and designed a manned module. When necessary, it can also be used as a manned mode. The pilot directly issues flight instructions, but the specific flight operations are still completed by the onboard intelligent flight module."

Xu Shenxue listened to the introductions and pondered for a while: "So, this is actually an AI drone?"

Xiaojiang Technology’s technical director said: “It’s like this… In fact, we have always been developing pure AI drones, which do not require various ground controls or human pilots. Passengers sitting on them can communicate with the onboard AI through voice commands, which is enough.”

"However, pure AI drones still have certain technical defects. No one dares to say that there will be no problems. At the same time, the laws and regulations are not perfect. This is not only the case in China, but even in China, I am afraid that few countries will approve our aircraft to fly in a pure AI way!"

"So, we added the ground control module and the manned module!"

"This problem is similar to the problem of current self-driving cars. The Hailan car next door can actually achieve full self-driving under complex road conditions, but it still requires a driver... because the law does not allow it."

Xu Shenxue said: "Legal problems should still be avoided."

"But we can't stop doing it just because of legal issues. Let's ignore the legal issues for now and just make the product and get the technology right!"

"If you can't carry people, then carry cargo first, and take your time!"

The head of Xiaojiang Technology said: "We think so too. We are now quite successful in the field of drone cargo transportation. We have previously launched two agricultural/small cargo drones with a load capacity of 30 kg and 60 kg, which have been recognized by the market."

"Many customers will buy this type of drone to spray pesticides or transport materials in complex terrain, especially in mountainous areas."

"We have previously tried to bring drones to Mount Everest and use them to transport supplies in high seas and waves, and achieved good results!"

"In order to promote the application, we have also established joint ventures with some start-up companies, or invested in some companies to support a number of agricultural/cargo drone operators for commercial operations in the drone field. The market development is currently very good."

"Our large X14 drone will also be used in this way for initial commercial applications, providing convenient and inexpensive air transportation in areas with complex terrain."

"This capacity is more than enough to transport 300 kilograms of cargo at a time!"

"Our batteries can be replaced and can be equipped with fast charging. If we use multiple sets of batteries for recycling, we can achieve a certain level of transportation efficiency."

"It is cheaper than transporting by helicopter, or by manpower, or by mule or horse."

"For example, the construction of some operators' base stations in mountainous areas and the construction of power transmission line towers for power grids are very suitable for the use of our cargo drones."

Xu Shenxue listened and watched, then moved closer to the drone to take a closer look.

In order to facilitate cargo transportation and take-off and landing in complex areas, this drone adopts the upper wing method, with a relatively simple cargo hold and landing platform in the middle.

It looks a bit crude, but in fact, this prototype has a very high technological content. It is much more advanced than a lot of so-called flying cars abroad. It can even be said to be a product of a different era.

In addition to batteries, motors, and flight control, the most important technology is the flight AI... This is the core technology.

It is also a technology that other manufacturers cannot even copy... These days, globally, only Zhiyun Group has mature and usable AI technology, which is at least ten years ahead of its peers in the world in terms of technology.

The AI ​​technology in Xiaojiang Technology was also obtained from Zhiyun Group. In name, it was a joint development between the two parties... but in fact, it was the Intelligent Research Institute of Zhiyun Group that specially customized it for Xiaojiang Technology and helped Xiaojiang Technology make a civilian version of the AI ​​drone model.

Then Xiaojiang Technology took this AI model algorithm, gradually carried out AI training on its own, and then improved it step by step.

Finally, it will be used on this AI drone.

This is the core technology of the X14 project.

As for ordinary electric multi-rotor aircraft, many foreign manufacturers can also make them, but they still need a pilot, and this pilot needs special training and training... To some extent, this thing is not much different from other aircraft in essence. It just uses electric and multi-rotor drive methods.

But the X14 drone from Xiaojiang Technology doesn’t require a pilot.

This is also the reason why Xiaojiang Technology's X14 is not called a flying car or an electric plane, but calls itself an "AI drone."

There is a huge difference between them!

Xu Shenxue was very interested in the X14 project. After taking a careful look at it, he conducted a test flight of the X14 drone.

The flight was very stable and there was nothing wrong with it.

Looking at the drones performing various flight shows in the air, Xu Shenxue suddenly thought of a question: This thing seems to be able to be used in the field of national defense.

Logistical transportation and personnel transport in complex terrain, such as the evacuation of the wounded...either use slow vehicles or helicopters.

The X14 drone is used to replace light helicopters for delivering supplies to complex areas, and it seems to be quite useful for evacuating the wounded.

"What is the estimated price of this X14 drone you guys made?"

Xiaojiang Technology’s people said: “It depends on the production volume. If it is a small-scale production in the early stage and the market promotion period, the unit price will be relatively high. We estimate it to be around 10 million yuan. However, we also plan to make a short-range version later. If the range is 40 to 50 kilometers, the price should be controlled at around 6 to 7 million yuan!”

Xu Shenxue said: "This price is a bit expensive. Compared with light helicopters, it has no price advantage. We still need to lower the price as much as possible in the future!"

Small civilian helicopters are also quite cheap. Some can be purchased for hundreds of thousands of dollars, while the more expensive ones can cost millions.

Xiaojiang Technology's X14 drone actually has no advantage purely in terms of cost!
However, the biggest advantage of Xiaojiang Technology's X14 drone is that it does not require specially trained pilots...which means that the threshold for use is very low.

An infantryman can sit on it and fly it with simple voice commands.

Therefore, it still has value. Xu Shenxue thought about helping Xiaojiang Technology to promote it and see if the higher-ups would accept it.

At this time, Xiaojiang Technology’s people also said: “But if we mass-produce it, the cost of our X14 drone will actually be relatively low. The high price in the past is mainly to spread the R&D cost and production line cost. If we purchase it on a large scale, we are confident that the price can be reduced to about one million yuan or even lower.”

"After all, the biggest cost of the X14 is not the body, but its onboard intelligent driving system. The software part of this system does not require any additional costs in the future. It only needs to copy the algorithm. Therefore, the greater the output, the lower the amortized cost."

"If we mass-produce it, we can really keep the cost under one million."

Xu Shenxue said: "This is still acceptable."

However, he did not offer to help with the sales right away. After all, this kind of thing was unpredictable, and it would be bad if he said it now and it didn't work out later.

It’s better for me to ask first. If the higher-ups are interested and want to give it a try, I’ll see how the situation goes then.

"We are working on the freight version first to figure out the business model, such as short-distance air transportation on fixed routes, air transportation in complex terrains, and applications in agriculture and other fields!"

"Then we will consider making a manned version and try to go the route of air taxis and private flying cars!"

"We will take it step by step, improve the technology, and make the product. We don't have to worry too much about commercialization."

After Xu Shenxue learned about the X14 project, he is still very much looking forward to it!

The emergence of this X14 project is worthy of my continuous investment in Xiaojiang Technology over the years!
Xu Shenxue has always attached great importance to drones, whether they are remote-controlled drones or the AI ​​drones that are being developed now. Xu Shenxue attaches great importance to them.

The purpose of acquiring Xiaojiang Technology, which was still in its early stages of entrepreneurship, was to develop drones.

Xu Shenxue's purpose in developing drones is very simple. One is for the national defense field, and the other is for the transportation field.

Many people in the defense field are familiar with this. Even remote-controlled drones now demonstrate great strategic value.

Many conflict areas have already widely used aerial photography drones produced by Xiaojiang Technology for low-altitude and close-range reconnaissance...

At the same time, some of Xiaojiang Technology's drones used in special fields, such as police, firefighting, transportation, etc., can be equipped with more professional high-magnification cameras or even infrared cameras. These special types of remote-controlled drones, in fact, from another perspective... are also quite useful for military use.

So although Xiaojiang Technology's products are all civilian products, they have actually been widely used in police work in various countries. Even many police agencies in the United States have purchased a large number of Xiaojiang Technology's drones for use as law enforcement tools.

Some armed groups in conflict areas have purchased a large number of Xiaojiang drones through some channels, and even used them directly as reconnaissance equipment after some modifications. Xiaojiang drones are the most convenient and most likely aerial reconnaissance force for many small countries and ordinary armed groups that lack air power!

At the same time, these small aerial photography drones of Xiaojiang have an important position even in medium and large countries, and can serve as aerial reconnaissance means for platoon-level and squad-level infantry...

This can allow an infantry squad or platoon to directly gain air reconnaissance and even strike capabilities, which can increase the combat distance of the infantry squad or platoon from the previous several hundred meters or one or two thousand meters to four or five kilometers or even longer.

This will directly lead to huge changes in traditional infantry tactics!

The most important thing is that this kind of small aerial photography drone is very cheap. Basically, you can buy a very good drone for reconnaissance for a few thousand dollars.

If it is not used for reconnaissance, but only for dropping bombs, or even for one-time use, there is no need to use such a "high-end" drone, and there is no need to carry expensive accessories such as expensive gimbals, high-precision cameras, infrared cameras, etc.

You can just get a small remote-controlled drone worth a few hundred dollars, add an ordinary camera, and carry a small bomb with it, and it will be very useful.

Even if it is used once, the battery can be made more extreme, which can effectively output more electricity, increase the maximum speed and load of the drone, or increase the hovering patrol time, range, etc.

Small remote-controlled drones, including multi-rotor and fixed-wing drones, have demonstrated great military value and are valued by many major countries... Of course, not everyone can make one.

Currently, China can develop drones very conveniently and easily thanks to its mature and large-scale consumer electronics supply chain, but if it were other countries, it would be much more difficult.

For small remote-controlled drones, if it is just about designing and assembling, many countries can actually make them...

But this is based on a prerequisite, that is, China's consumer electronics industry chain: various components must be imported from China, technical authorizations such as drone flight control must be obtained from China, and so on.

If overseas companies want to not rely on the Chinese electronic consumer supply chain and want to play with 100% domestically produced remote-controlled small drones, to be honest, they can still make them, but the cost will be sky-high...

Xiaojiang Technology is not without competitors overseas, but the photography drones made by its competitors cost hundreds of thousands of dollars each, and the cheaper ones cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Xiaojiang Technology’s entry-level aerial photography drone only sells for more than $1,000 in overseas markets.

What can they use to compete with Xiaojiang Technology?

Because, behind the small and cheap drones, the drones themselves are not the threshold, but the consumer electronics industry chain is the threshold.

Behind a cheap drone that costs only a few hundred dollars is China's electronic consumer industry chain with a production value of trillions of dollars, which also involves some other electrical industry chains.

You must first have a Chinese electronic consumer industry chain, and then add some other supporting industries, and then you can make drones that cost a few hundred dollars... This order cannot be reversed.

Therefore, many people have seen that many countries are purchasing civilian drones from Xiaojiang Technology, and then modifying them, or even simply using them directly in the military field without modification.

In some war-torn areas such as West Asia, local armed groups have used Xinjiang drones on a large scale...for reconnaissance and for dropping badminton bombs and the like.

By the way, this is also the main reason why Xiaojiang Technology was sanctioned by the United States this year... They accused Xiaojiang Technology of suspected arms sales and providing drones to sensitive areas.

I swear to God...Xiaojiang Technology has never developed any military drones, not even in its own home to avoid suspicion.

Those people outside took Xiaojiang Technology's aerial photography drones, agricultural drones and the like, and modified them for military purposes... Xiaojiang Technology is also helpless.

As for some domestic military drones and the like, this has nothing to do with Xiaojiang Technology. All kinds of domestic remote-controlled drones are developed by other drone research and development units and have nothing to do with Xiaojiang Technology.

The AI ​​multi-rotor drone technology that was previously developed was just started when Xu Shenxue separated the project team and established a new drone company to develop it.

Today, many of Xiaojiang Technology’s drone projects are all civilian drones.

This made the management of Xiaojiang Technology somewhat dissatisfied... These foreigners only know how to bully the weak and fear the strong. I am a civilian drone developer, but they insisted on saying that I was engaged in arms sales and then imposed sanctions on me!
My big brother Zhiyun Group, everyone on earth knows that it has undertaken a lot of secret projects, especially military AI projects, why don’t you sanction it?

The Americans said: Ahem, because Zhiyun is really working on military projects...

Besides, Zhiyun is Zhiyun, and you are you, how can they be the same... How shameless of you to compare with Zhiyun~
The Americans are not stupid. Today they dare to complain about some secret projects of Zhiyun Group, and tomorrow Zhiyun dares to ban the sale of APO graphics cards to them. A large number of major American high-tech companies that are engaged in AI and embracing the new era will immediately start cursing.

Even a lot of American military AI projects are trained with APO graphics cards...

After Xiaojiang was banned from selling its products, it appealed and announced that in the U.S. market, due to force majeure leading to rising costs, too many orders and inability to supply, and other factors, all of its products would increase in price by 50% to 100%.

Xu Shenxue also heard about this and felt that the other side was quite magical.

They don’t even have a replacement product at home, yet they’re hoping to ban the sale of DJI Technology’s drones. But it fails, and instead they have to buy them at high prices.

What are you picturing?
In the field of small remote-controlled drones, Xiaojiang Technology is still very powerful and has no rivals in the world for the time being.

What is worth mentioning above is the traditional remote-controlled drone. After Xu Shenxue pioneered this field, no one paid much attention to it afterwards. After all, technology has developed very rapidly, and today's remote-controlled drones are no longer considered cutting-edge high-tech in China.

Many domestic manufacturers can make remote-controlled drones, but their performance is not very good and they are not as good as Xiaojiang Technology.

What Xu Shenxue really cares about now is AI drones.

From the very beginning, Xu Shenxue's ambition in the field of drones was to develop AI drones, and small remote-controlled drones were just a transition.

AI drones are the future!

For example, in the military field, there are ‘advanced intelligent unmanned fighter combat systems’ and ‘advanced small drone systems’... that is, swarms and further AI fighters.

In the civilian field, Xu Shenxue wants to promote "low-altitude cargo/passenger AI drones", and hopes that in the future he can create an aircraft that allows people to take a drone directly from the balcony or rooftop to a designated location when they go out.

However, the concepts of flying cars and electric aircraft are different from those on the market today, especially those developed by some foreign flying car companies.

Xu Shenxue is working on an AI drone, not a pure electric airplane or flying car!
Xu Shenxue has big ambitions. What he wants is: an intelligent air traffic network!
And not just a flying car.

After seeing Xiaojiang Technology's X14 project, Xu Shenxue also took a look at Xiaojiang Technology's large number of remote-controlled drones, from small entry-level aerial photography drones to slightly larger industrial/agricultural drones that are several meters long.

Xiaojiang Technology has quite a wide variety of remote-controlled drones, which basically cover aerial photography drones for individual enthusiasts, professional aerial photography drones for professional aerial photography practitioners, special-purpose drones for firefighting, patrol, police, etc., and cargo drones and agricultural drones for industrial needs.

The load weight ranges from a few hundred grams to fifty or sixty kilograms, meeting different needs in the market.

The products have a complete range, are cost-effective and most importantly, have amazing technology, which makes Xiaojiang Technology's drones have no competitors worldwide.

Even in the US market, which wants to ban the sale of Xiaojiang Technology, Xiaojiang Technology is still the only dominant player and local consumers have no other option.

Xiaojiang Technology, which monopolizes the market, has decent revenue, which is expected to reach about 4 billion US dollars this year... The reason for such high revenue is not only because of good products, but also because they have relied on Zhiyun Group's AI technology to improve product performance, and rely on Zhiyun Group's overseas channel network to open up a large number of overseas channels and distribute their products to more than 100 countries around the world.

Therefore, Xiaojiang Technology's drones have very high sales overseas.

Furthermore, as a civilian product, many large customers who seem to be generous and do not bargain purchase drones from DJI Technology, especially some high-end drone models, for military use.

This also led to some of Xiaojiang Technology's expensive high-end drone models selling very well, which in turn raised the average price, increased revenue and improved profits.

Although Xiaojiang Technology has never accepted orders from military agencies or regional armed groups, it cannot prevent some seemingly civilian customers from reselling or renting drones to military agencies in various countries through various channels after purchasing drones...

This is how the Xinjiang drone used by the old US military came about.

As the undisputed leader in the global drone industry... and even the only seller, Xiaojiang Technology has almost monopolized this very niche vertical track of drones, leaving almost no room for survival for latecomers.

This is also the reason why they were able to reach a scale of four billion US dollars!
Although the market is small, they have swallowed up the whole market...

Moreover, Xiaojiang's revenue continues to grow significantly, the market is still in a period of growth, and the prospects are still relatively good.

Although Xu Shenxue looks down on this little money, it would be great if his subsidiaries could generate revenue, become self-sufficient, and have money to invest in research and development without Xu Shenxue having to spend extra money to support them.

Xu Shenxue was very happy about this and praised and encouraged Xiaojiang Technology's management team.

Then a few days later, when Xu Shenxue went to Xiannvshan Holdings for inspection and meeting, he also mentioned the example of Xiaojiang Technology, which had developed the market through good products, achieved self-sufficiency, and even invested money in research and development.

Looking at the high-level executives of the Fairy Mountain Holdings system, they were extremely embarrassed...

Because Xu Shenxue has invested more than 80 billion US dollars in the entire Fairy Mountain Holding system...all in cash, but it is still in a loss-making state!
Not to mention making back the investment, we can’t even turn a loss into a profit!
Last year, the company lost more than 10 billion U.S. dollars. This year, the situation is better, but the loss is still expected to reach more than 8 billion U.S. dollars.

Although Xu Shenxue has a lot of money, it is not a big deal if Xiannvshan Holdings continues to lose money!
So at today's meeting, Xu Shenxue couldn't help but say a few words: Although I have a lot of money, you have to spend it frugally, and think of more ways to make it back!

I can’t always expect me to pay for it myself!

(End of this chapter)