Reborn in 2010, the AI ​​in my mind is too powerful.

Chen Yiran found Gao Dewei in the rest area, where he was eating a donut while stuffing several papers into his bag.

He brought significantly more papers than Chen Yiran to this DAC trip. He practically scanned all the papers on the physics design floor, picking out the useful ones and filling half a backpack. This was partly because he was indeed more deeply involved in theory, but more importantly, Chen Yiran had cheated and basically didn't need to handle any materials; he could just glance at them and Jasmine would memorize them.

Chen Yiran came over without hesitation and humbly asked for advice: "Old Gao, my understanding of chips is still incomplete. Especially the manufacturing end. If I want to understand the various detailed processes and issues in the manufacturing end in detail, where should I go? Don't tell me about universities. I've learned all the basics I can. I need more practical, industrial, and industry-specific knowledge. Like general lithography, processes, and packaging."

Gao Dewei answered without hesitation: "Semicon West, the US semiconductor exhibition, is held in San Francisco in July. It covers semiconductor manufacturing equipment, semiconductor materials, and semiconductor applications. If you want to understand the overall situation of the current semiconductor industry, just go to that exhibition. EDA companies also go, but not as many as here."

After all, this is the domain of EDA and chip design professionals; semiconductor exhibitions are mostly for selling manufacturing equipment. It's the domain of companies like Applied Materials, Lam Research, and KLA. They sell lithography machines, etching machines, and inspection machines. Every year, companies like TSMC and Samsung go there to inspect and even discuss purchases directly on the spot.

"Okay, I'll go check it out later. It's even more convenient to go to San Francisco."

Gao Dewei took a sip of coffee and added, "But don't expect to learn any real technology even if you go. The core parameters are definitely not on the exhibition boards; they're all in the Process Design Kit (PDK). You have to sign a confidentiality agreement with those companies to get them. The biggest use of the US Semiconductor Show is to let you know who is doing what, what the products look like, and to grasp the general direction of manufacturing."

"Anything else, related to chip architecture? I'm planning to brush up on my knowledge; what the industry demonstrates is quite different from what Stanford teaches."

"Isn't Stanford a good teacher? It's just a coincidence. The Hot Chips technology conference held every August is in Stanford Memorial Auditorium. Intel, AMD, and Nvidia all attend; you could say that everyone in the world who makes processors goes there. If you sit there for three days, you'll know exactly what chipmakers need and what they're currently working on."

"Okay, I'll check them out later. These locations are all pretty good. It's like three important trade shows, all in California, and two of them are near the company, so it'll be very convenient for me to drive there."

"Silicon Valley's reputation is no joke. I remember a joke that goes something like, why do startups choose to open in Silicon Valley? It's so they can get less reimbursement for their travel expenses when attending trade shows every year."

"That's interesting. Let's go, we'll come back tomorrow."

"Okay, not much to show for it today. I tried to strike up a conversation a few times but missed, after all, it's only the first day. For a startup like ours that hasn't even commercialized yet, it'll be a few days before we can really have a proper chat with people. You need to be a little more thick-skinned, your name seems to still be somewhat useful among Chinese companies. Several Chinese companies are potential clients for us in the future."

"Well, okay, I'll try my best to make an appearance tomorrow."

Chen Yiran adopted Gao Dewei's suggestion and began consciously visiting the booths of Chinese companies the next day.

He went to HiSilicon again, and Zhang Wenbin from the physics design department was very enthusiastic when he heard Chen Yiran's name.

"I heard about you from Engineer Zhou. Although we're not from the same company, we're both Chinese companies, so we do have some exchanges. Yesterday, several of us from different companies went out to dinner together, and we all heard about it. There's a Chinese genius who swindled two hundred million US dollars from Microsoft, dropped out of school, and started working in EDA."

"Come on, he's told us everything about your situation. We're just waiting for your results. Leave your contact information first, and if this path doesn't work out, you can contact us. With your abilities, you could easily get something at Huawei; I can introduce you. By the way, I heard you're from Beijing?"

"Yes, from Shijingshan."

"Oh, your family works for Shougang Group? My home isn't far either; I'm from Haidian. Good luck! This is a tough direction for you, but you're a genius; you might just make a name for yourself."

After exchanging a few technical words, the two Beijingers turned to casual conversation, mainly because Zhang Wenbin seemed eager to bring Chen Yiran over, trying to build rapport and talk about feelings.

One minute she was asking if Shougang was relocating, the next she was talking about where to find the best breakfast in Haidian District, and she mentioned that Beijing no longer has smog and sandstorms are less frequent. Then she added that if she couldn't get used to life in the US, China was a great place too. She said both Huawei and HiSilicon are very supportive of research projects, and she was willing to fund Chen Yiran and collaborate on something.

Chen Yiran was a little overwhelmed; the other party was far too enthusiastic. After exchanging various contact methods, she quickly slipped away.

The same pattern applied to several other Chinese companies afterward. They made mostly meaningless promises to Chen Yiran's current company, such as promising to support her if she achieved any success.

However, when it comes to Chen Yiran personally, everyone talks about Chinese sentiments and wants to bring him back to cooperate.

On the contrary, the second visit to the SMIC booth yielded some results. Engineer Zhou had gone to listen to other reports, and the temporary booth manager was Zhao Yuanzheng.

From the conversation, Chen Yiran could tell that this person was capable, but he didn't need them for manufacturing yet. They started with casual conversation to build rapport, and together they complained about Shanghai's outrageous housing prices, the exorbitant costs of raising children in China, and the fierce competition for kindergarten resources.

Chen Yiran sensed that Zhao Yuanzheng wouldn't stay at SMIC for long and was clearly looking to switch to a company with higher pay. Chen Yiran thought that if he were to work in manufacturing in the future, Zhao Yuanzheng would be a good employee, so he said a few words to him, and the two exchanged personal contact information.

This conversation was mutually beneficial. Zhao Yuanzheng definitely had his own ideas. He thought that if Chen Yiran really succeeded in the chip industry and even entered the manufacturing sector, he might come and help him, provided that he was paid enough.

After talking to a potential employee, Chen Yiran continued to look at reports and soon found two more targets.

One is Lin Xiao, a PhD student at the Institute of Microelectronics, Tsinghua University, who is in his fourth year. His dissertation focuses on mixed-signal layout optimization.

It was obvious that her supervisor had brought her here to broaden her horizons; she had set up a small table in the poster display area for academic exchanges. She was introducing her paper to passersby in somewhat broken English.

After Chen Yiran went over, he listened quite attentively, lingering for quite a while. Lin Xiao was a little excited and spoke even more earnestly.

Then Chen Yiran gestured for him to speak Chinese. In fact, Lin Xiao could express himself clearly in English, but his accent was too strong.

Lin Xiao was a little embarrassed, then started discussing with Chen Yiran in Chinese again. Chen Yiran asked a few questions, which Lin Xiao answered quite well.

His views on handling boundary decay in the dense region of macrocells of the weighting function are excellent. I feel he could be an employee and work for us.

According to Jasmine's evaluation, Chen Yiran left his contact information, saying that Lin Xiao could contact him if he wanted to work in the United States after graduation.

This is a promising talent who can be groomed as a core member of the team. Chen Yiran plans to offer him a job directly when he graduates next year. It shouldn't be too difficult, considering that salaries in related industries in China are still significantly lower than in the US.

Moreover, it has been very easy for foreigners to obtain H1B work visas in the United States in the past two years, without even needing to go through a lottery. In a few years, it will be much more difficult to hire a foreigner.

Another advantage is that when Chen Yiran is ready to return to China to develop his career in seven or eight years, it will be a test and a test of his character. If he can give up his life in the United States and return to China with Chen Yiran, then he can confidently tie Chen Yiran to his ship for the rest of his life.

Lin Xiao has to wait a year, but there's another one that doesn't even require waiting.

Han Yu graduated with a bachelor's and master's degree from the University of Science and Technology of China and holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. This time, she came with her advisor and managed to secure a 15-minute presentation.

There are many small reporting sessions like this at DAC, which are actually not only for communication, but also a bit like a peacock displaying its tail feathers.

It's about seeing if there are any companies that we can be interested in, and if we can give them an offer right after the presentation.

Jasmine also thought Han Yu's topic was quite good. Plus, he's a recent graduate, so his salary is cheap; hiring him directly into Tiexue wouldn't be a bad deal.

However, the presentation was ultimately a success; out of the dozen or so audience members, four or five handed Han Yu their business cards. This made Chen Yiran feel that her chances were slim, since startups don't have much of an advantage when hiring.

Unexpectedly, when Han Yu spoke to Chen Yiran, he was very proactive: "Hey, you're Chen Yiran, right? I saw your photo on Renren, it was taken at your classmate reunion in Delaware. Wow, that's impressive, you didn't even go to college and you're already making so much money. What brings you to DAC? Are you working in this field now?"

"Yes, I started my own company. Your direction aligns well with ours. Would you like to give it a try?"

"Sure, I was originally planning to go back to China. But I'd like to try my luck at your company. I just graduated. Can your company handle H1B visas? I'm currently on OPT (Optional Practical Training, a period of time international students can legally work after graduation, usually one year, but up to three years for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics majors)."

"No problem. Since the subprime crisis, there hasn't been a lottery for H1B visas; they're issued easily. Give me your phone number, and I'll give it to the company lawyers to handle it. How about I offer you a salary of $140,000, considering you just graduated? And then, I'll give you a $5,000 signing bonus?"

"Sure, sure. The company in China that contacts me offers far worse pay. Most of the employees in your company are Chinese, right? To be honest, the main reason I wanted to go back to China was that I wasn't used to working with a bunch of foreigners."

"Apart from the three Indians, the rest, including you, are almost ten Chinese. Oh, and there's also a receptionist, the only white person in the store."

"That's great, then you'll be my boss from now on."

Chen Yiran was very happy, feeling that his reputation was still useful. Without going into details, he gained a great general just by showing his face.

I checked my phone and it was already afternoon. I hadn't eaten properly all day, just grabbing a hot dog for lunch. I took out my phone and called Gao Dewei, ready to retreat and find a good place for a proper meal.

Unexpectedly, after the call connected, he learned that Gao Dewei had arranged a dinner for him, one that he couldn't refuse at all.