CSGO Unboxing Streamer: A Charity-Driven Tycoon

Chapter 257 Auction

A100 industrial-grade A-class graphics card.

Last year, the market price was around 150,000 yuan per piece.

Similar to CSGO skins, which generally have five wear levels.

The resale value of A100 graphics cards varies depending on their condition.

But even though it was scarred by war.

If it's usable, the starting price is 80,000.

This year's sanctions have been further expanded.

As a result, prices have risen considerably.

A single A100 sheet, if brand new and unused, will cost at least 300,000.

Moreover, high demand can actually drive up the unit price.

For example, if you need 100 copies, the price would be at least 35 to 40 million to acquire them.

The computing power of one A100 is 0.6P.

To meet the needs of the Baize project, at least 800 to 1,000 sheets are required.

And this was at the customs internal auction.

That's exactly 1,200.

Lu Yiming's plan is to take them all.

No matter how much it costs!
This is Lu Yiming's second visit to Hong Kong.

However, I didn't get to explore properly last time I came.

"Mr. Lu! We've already made inquiries! There are a total of seven companies that might be interested in these graphics cards. However, three of them are companies we've worked with before and have already spoken to us, allowing them to give them to us. The other one is a subsidiary of Tencent, and they seem determined to get this item."

Industrial-grade graphics card.

Especially those intercepted by customs and verified to be brand new.

The value of these 1,200 cards.

It starts at at least 500 million.

In fact.

The factory price of this thing is only a little over 100,000.

Being sanctioned is this painful.

They had no choice but to pay a high price to buy it.

However, since it was intercepted by customs, it was destined to be costless, and the money from the auction would go into the national treasury. Lu Yiming didn't care how much it cost.

He immediately replied nonchalantly, "Okay! Thanks!"

Since the establishment of the group company.

Cao Siyun assembled a secretariat for Lu Yiming.

There were eight people in total, led by Zhuge Hong.

The person currently accompanying Lu Yiming to Hong Kong for this auction is none other than Zhuge Hong.

Don't know why.

Lu Yiming had a natural sense of trust in the surname Zhuge.

It was when I saw this list of eight people.

Lu Yiming could tell from the name alone that Zhuge Hong was the leader of these eight people.

The auction was held at 10 a.m. the following day.

Lu Yiming arrived at the scene early.

A form must be filled out upon entry.

Looking at the funding limit on the table.

Lu Yiming turned to Zhuge Hong and asked, "How much should I fill in?"

Customs auctions are rather simple and crude.

It's simply a matter of comparing bids; there aren't many fancy tricks involved.

Zhuge Hong told Lu Yiming to fill in whatever he wanted.

After all, they were determined to win this auction.

Since it was just a random number, Lu Yiming didn't have much to say and simply filled in the maximum amount.

Fill in as many nines as there are squares.

Enter the auction venue.

The hall is very small.

Those invited were mostly representatives from large domestic companies.

In fact, Lu Yiming didn't need to come in person.

This kind of thing can be done by the people below.

But the auction was very attractive to Lu Yiming.

Liang Guangquan.

The name itself might sound unfamiliar to some.

But speaking of Tuojing Technology...

At least among stock market investors, it should be a household name.

There are very few A-shares with a price exceeding 200.

Topcon Technology is one of them.

Lu Yiming arrived relatively early.

He was assigned a seat in the front row, and he could see a sign on the table to his left that read "TopQ Technology".

at this time.

Zhuge Hong said softly, "Tuoqing Technology should be our biggest competitor in this auction."

In fact.

These chips were seized by customs.

The buyer should be Tuoqing Technology.

However, they could only suffer in silence.

Hearing this, Lu Yiming nodded.

Then his gaze fell on the booklet on the table.

This is the catalog of items up for auction today.

In fact, the items up for auction today are not just the graphics cards they need; there are more than thirty items up for auction, all of which are needed by the semiconductor industry.

From the smallest raw materials.

From high-end graphics cards to A-grade graphics cards.

The transaction volume is expected to be at least 10 billion.

It's hard to say whether the price will be cheaper.

After all, it requires an auction.

But the items are definitely rare, and some of them are simply impossible to obtain through legitimate channels.

soon.

The venue was about 80% full.

The first item will be auctioned immediately when the time is up.

There was no fancy process whatsoever.

Another official, brandishing a gavel, announced: "Ten grams of graphene product, starting bid 150 million! Minimum increment 100,000!"

Hear this.

Lu Yiming raised an eyebrow.

The booklet only contains descriptions of the items, without a starting price.

The starting bid of 150 million for ten grams of graphene was something he hadn't expected.

This is where having an assistant comes in handy.

"Graphene is difficult to produce, so only a few laboratories can produce it, and only a very small amount can be produced each year."

“The production of graphene requires complex chemical vapor deposition or mechanical exfoliation techniques, and the production cost can be as high as millions of dollars per gram.”

"A starting bid of 150 million is very low; in fact, the final bid should have reached 500 million."

Zhuge Hong introduced Lu Yiming in a low voice.

The bidding process for the number of entries has begun.

After fierce bidding.

Just as Zhuge Hong predicted.

Once the price exceeded 500 million, only two companies remained in the bidding.

There were more than thirty locations on site.

The occupancy rate was 80%.

Each position represents a company.

This means that more than 20 companies are involved.

The final transaction price was set at 530 million.

This is also the time.

Lu Yiming took out his phone.

Through calculation.

His current net worth isn't even enough to buy a few kilograms.
This is the first time since Lu Yiming founded the group that he has felt that an item is too expensive.

The auction continues.

Prices are all in the nine figures.

It's fair to say that the semiconductor industry is a real money-burning business.

soon.

Finally, they arrived at Lu Yiming's target item for this trip.

One thousand two hundred A100 graphics cards are being sold as a package.

The starting bid is 180 million.

Buying this thing for under 300 million would be pure profit.

The bidding price quickly exceeded 300 million.

This is also the time.

Lu Yiming, who had been motionless, raised the sign in his hand and softly called out, "Five hundred million!"

Five hundred million.

That's the maximum price for this batch of A-grade graphics cards.

The current bidding has just exceeded 300 million.

Lu Yiming's offer attracted the attention of everyone present.

In fact.

They noticed Lu Yiming as soon as they entered the venue.

After all, she's a streamer.

Despite frequently trending on social media, he still manages to become somewhat recognizable.

It's quite rare to see a CEO of Lu Yiming's caliber directly participate in an auction house of this caliber.

Quoting a price of 500 million is indeed outrageous.

But that doesn't mean they'll give up. The supply of A-grade graphics cards is currently severely restricted, especially with 1,200 cards auctioned this time—that's almost half a month's worth of production capacity for the manufacturer.

soon.

When the not-so-professional auctioneer counted down to two...

Immediately, someone raised their paddle and offered 510 million.

There were seven bidders at the time.

Currently, after Lu Yiming's offer of 500 million, only two companies remain in the new round of bidding.

One of them is Tuoqing Technology, which is located next to Lu Yiming.

"Mr. Lu, this is over 550 million. It's a bit of a loss for us to take it on."

It's more than just a loss.

The price per sheet has already reached over 450,000 yuan.

It is more than three times the ex-factory price.

However, while it's easy to get one or two industrial-grade graphics cards, getting thousands requires not only money but also a certain amount of time.

And most importantly.

There is currently no legal way to obtain so many brand new ones.

Although it can be used even if it's second-hand.

But Lu Yiming will definitely arrange the best for Bai Ze.

He immediately raised his sign again and shouted, "Six hundred million!"

Compared to Christie's auction house.

The auctioneer on site has demonstrated unprofessionalism to the extreme.

Faced with Lu Yiming's offer of 600 million.

He simply repeated it in a very casual tone.

It is clear.

Regardless of the bid amount, the auctioneer receives no commission.

The price of 600 million is even more outrageous.

at this time.

The two people from Tuoqing Technology were responsible for participating in the auction.

One of them held the phone between his face and shoulder, with a pile of documents in his hands, and was talking to the person on the other end of the phone with a flushed face.

The other competitor withdrew.

at this time.

Taking a moment to speak, Lu Yiming asked Zhuge Hong, who was standing beside him, "Why does Tuoqing Technology need so many A-grade graphics cards? Are they also working on artificial intelligence?"

1,200 sheets.

Over 700 petabytes of computing power.

Even if the combined performance is reduced by half, it still has over 300P.

This level of computing power can provide the necessary resources for a research project in a near-first-tier provincial capital city.

Zhuge Hong answered every question.

However, the answer was rather subtle.

"In fact, rumors in the industry suggest that Toplight Technology was originally the buyer of this batch of goods. With the current semiconductor market booming, many companies are preparing to catch the wave that you, Mr. Lu, have set up, and have launched artificial intelligence projects one after another."

Hear this.

Lu Yiming's expression froze.

Unexpectedly, the reason for having this competitor was because of myself.

But isn't he worried that he might not be able to sell to him in the future?

Think of this.

Lu Yiming suddenly thought of something.

He immediately cursed himself for being stupid.

The core reason for the sanctions is that they are not in place. Once sanctions are imposed, they will definitely be lifted. This is not the first time the other party has done this.

In the end, the other party gave up.

The price remained at 620 million.

The price of a single piece reached over 500,000.

Lu Yiming had no intention of bidding on the other items.

The entire auction lasted for more than an hour.

At the end.

The two people from Tuoqing Technology walked up to Lu Yiming.

One of them spoke up, "Mr. Lu, hello! Our Liang family would like to invite you to lunch. Would that be convenient for you?"

In fact.

They were simply the closest to each other.

It can be seen that many people at the scene are walking towards Lu Yiming.

at this time.

Lu Yiming had just gotten up.

Upon hearing this, he looked over and said, "I'm sorry! I'm only here to secure this batch of graphics cards. For any work-related matters, please contact General Manager Cao directly. I personally don't handle any company affairs, so I don't think General Manager Liang and I have anything to discuss."

Lu Yiming is serious about being a hands-off manager.

I don't want to influence any of Cao Siyun's decisions or plans because of myself.

After the refusal.

He left directly with Zhuge Hong.

Lu Yiming even refused Liang Guangquan's invitation.

The remaining people did not come forward to disturb them.

The auction venue was not far from the hotel where Lu Yiming was staying.

During the boarding process, Zhuge Hong said, "We have already informed the customs here. The goods will take an evening flight directly to Xingcheng, and we can pick them up directly at Xingcheng Customs."

Lu Yiming nodded slightly at this.

When asked if he was going straight back to the hotel after getting on the bus.

After thinking for a moment, Lu Yiming said, "Let's go to Central first! I remember I own a property there."

Previously, Tian En Lu Yiming acquired a luxury apartment in Central, Hong Kong.

I hired a lawyer to complete the procedures.

But Lu Yiming never had a chance to go and see.

The total area is 1200 square feet.

The total area is over 130 square meters.

Although Gongtan has been criticizing Hong Kong's richest man.

But in fact, Hong Kong abolished the concept of shared area a long time ago.

The usable floor area is 130 square meters.

The house isn't small anymore.

at this time.

The lobby of the hotel where Lu Yiming is staying.

You can see many middle-aged people, some with assistants and some with secretaries, looking like they are waiting for something.

His gaze kept drifting towards the doorway.

Hong Kong's property prices are among the top ten globally.

Not to mention new homes in the prime location of Central.

The average price is over 300,000 per square meter.

However, Lu Yiming's house is even more outrageous, with an average price of 500,000 yuan per square meter, and the entire house, excluding decoration, costs more than 60 million yuan.

Including renovations, it's worth over 100 million.

The renovation costing over 30 million yuan can no longer be described as luxurious.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a palace.

The entrance door, made entirely of copper, alone costs several million.

What's most remarkable is that the door is clearly very heavy.

But it moves very smoothly.

It makes one wonder if there was any cutting corners in the workmanship.

Zhuge Hong stood at the door waiting.

Lu Yiming toured his house with the attitude of a visitor.

It's safe to say that Lu Yiming wouldn't buy this kind of house on his own.

It's not that he can't accept the price.

However, he rarely visits Hong Kong, and the opportunity to stay here is extremely rare.

Think of this.

He immediately walked to the door, looked at Zhuge Hong, and said, "I'll sleep here tonight! Tomorrow I want to wander around; feel free to go wherever you want!"

It's a rare opportunity to come here.

Naturally, there's no rush to go back.

There's a housekeeper here to take care of cleaning, so there's no problem moving in right away.

Zhuge Hong had a lot of information.

The option is to go directly back to the hotel.

But as soon as I entered the hotel lobby, I was immediately surrounded by a group of people.

"Hello! This is Dongfang Huachuang. Is Mr. Lu here?"

"Hello."

Lu Yiming's current influence in the semiconductor industry.

He can be called the uncrowned king.

Or perhaps a spiritual leader.

Currently, there are only a few dozen companies that can get on board with Aurogon.

As for the project that Lu Yiming revealed at the previous launch event for the second-generation Aurogon machine.

I know of no more than a handful of companies.

Lu Yiming's trip to Hong Kong showed them an opportunity.

They tried to get close to Lu Yiming to obtain more information.

of course.

It would be even better if I could get on the bus.

Faced with so many people introducing themselves, most of whom were big names in the industry, Zhuge Hong was momentarily dazed.

After all, many of these people wield considerable influence in the industry.

Now they're all gathered in the hotel lobby just to wait for their boss.

at this time.

A sense of confidence welled up within me.

Zhuge Hong said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "I'm sorry, Mr. Lu will not be discussing any work during this trip to Hong Kong. Please contact our General Manager Cao directly if you have any questions, so as not to disturb Mr. Lu's trip to Hong Kong."

(End of this chapter)