2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 810 Internet Conference

The richest man is 50 years old, and the second richest man is 29 years old.

One is riding the wave of its unbeatable sales during Singles' Day, while the other is generating immense buzz due to its soaring stock price and skyrocketing net worth within half a month of its IPO.

It's definitely full of highlights.

In 2014, the world's richest person born in the 80s was Mark Zuckerberg, whose reputation had not yet collapsed. His net worth was $285 billion, ranking him 20th in the world.

Based on this year's average exchange rate, it's roughly 1750 billion yuan, which is about the same as Lei Jun's net worth, more than Tan Jincheng's.

There are indeed quite a few outstanding post-80s individuals this year, such as Chen Ou, who speaks for himself; Wang Xin of Meituan; Zhang Yiming, who raised 100 million US dollars; and so on. They have all made quite a splash.

But the biggest spotlight is definitely on Boss Tan. Once again, two companies under his actual control have successfully gone public within a year. Wei Lai's prospectus has given outsiders a glimpse into his ambitions.

Tan Jincheng's net worth is an absolute topic of discussion both domestically and globally. Since the company went public on November 3, with each consecutive limit-up day, nosy media outlets have been calculating the changes in Tan Jincheng's net worth every day.

While the media certainly played a role in this, in the mobile internet era, with stock trading now done via apps and account opening no longer as complicated as before, the public's enthusiasm for participating in the discussion is far greater than it was in 2008.

The combination of the Internet and new energy will definitely be the economic trend in the next 10 years or so, and he has made investments in both of these sectors.

Even with the soaring stock price, his net worth has never surpassed that of Jack Ma. It seems more like fate, as the internet is clearly hotter than new energy, and Jack Ma seems more like a successor to the previous generation of entrepreneurs.

Unfortunately, Ma changed his original intention and turned a high-tech company into a financial tool.

Pony Ma is right. Because of Singles' Day, November has almost become Ali's exclusive month. In order to increase sales, they also have to compete for this traffic.

On Singles' Day in 2014, Taobao's sales reached 571 billion yuan. Xiaomi had the highest single-store sales, with 15 billion yuan in sales in one day. Tan Jincheng's two major brands also performed well.

GXG sold 1.2 million yuan worth of goods on Singles' Day. Another 3C brand under Dexian Electronics, Pisen, sold more than 2000 million yuan worth of goods on Tmall, and its sales on JD.com and Orange Products Fair were also quite good.

Orange Products' total sales for the day increased by 2.3 times compared to last year, with rapid growth in sales volume on WeChat and mobile platforms, which is a truly impressive performance.

The promotion in Singles' Day is very important for a company like Taobao. Boss Tan has grabbed a lot of traffic this month, and who knows, Jack Ma might actually say a few sarcastic things about him at the event today.

Tan Jincheng shrugged indifferently: "Whatever, I'm just here to watch the show. I'll sit at the same table as Zhang Yiming and the others."

The online world is no less competitive than the physical world, and seniority matters just as much. People like Lao Ding and Lao Zhang, who were among the first generation of portal websites, are considered to be highly experienced. For example, Lao Ding was one of the organizers of this Wuzhen Internet Conference.

The second batch naturally consists of BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent), which are currently the most popular and powerful group.

As for Wang Xin and Zhang Yiming, they are still juniors.

Lei Jun's status is not low either, but his Xiaomi is quite unique. It can be said to be an internet company, or it can be said to be a physical company. Although they do not have any factories so far, they are indeed engaged in hardware. Xiaomi's sales can drive a lot of employment.

"Haha, you won't be able to sit at their table, you'll be sitting at the investors' table."

As they walked into the venue, the two men didn't exchange many words. They hadn't arrived early, and there were already quite a few people in the venue. The arrival of the two bigwigs attracted a swarm of reporters.

"Come on, you're the boss."

Little Ma wanted to see him make a fool of himself, and Tan Jincheng was equally eager to see him make a fool of himself first. These impromptu interrogations usually involve tricky questions, and even Tencent's own reporters wouldn't hesitate to trick their boss.

"What are you saying? You almost became the richest man in China, why are you calling me a big shot?"

The usually serious Pony Ma rarely jokes in front of the media, but Tan Jincheng was clearly not fooled: "I'm just here to join in the fun. You answer the reporters' questions. I'm leaving now."

Without waiting for the reporters to react, Tan Jincheng quickly escaped under the protection of Lai Yiu-fai and the on-site security.

To say it's just for fun is a bit of an overstatement. At the first World Internet Conference, Weilai Auto also had its own showcase, namely, its brand-new L2 intelligent driving system, which would be unveiled at the conference.

This thing actually has something to do with the internet.

Of course, the most important thing is that Tan Jincheng wants to use the Internet Conference as a platform to promote his products. Compared with traditional auto shows, which only attract the attention of car enthusiasts, the Internet Conference has the attention of the whole nation.

While Weilai did not launch any new models this year, it does not mean that existing models and technologies have not been updated. For example, L2 intelligent driving and battery technology have been updated.

Weilai's latest L2 intelligent driving technology will also be showcased at the Guangzhou Auto Show, and will subsequently be gradually rolled out via OTA updates to existing customers' in-vehicle systems.

In addition, although no new models have been launched, the current models will be improved. The same model will be produced differently every year, such as the 2013 ES6 and the 2014 ES6.

The entire Internet Conference lasts for three days. The opening ceremony in the Dragon and Phoenix Hall is scheduled for 11:00 AM, followed by a sub-forum on new media and new ecosystem activities. Earlier this month, the Wuzhen government released a promotional video for the Internet Conference.

That said, the first Internet Conference was truly a grand affair, with top-level support and participation from almost every internet company, large and small, as well as investors.

The sub-venue was set up in Hangzhou, which was Ma's home turf, and Ma was in high spirits when facing the media.

"President Tan."

After parting ways with Little Ma, Tan Jincheng was stopped again by Zhang Yiming.

Wang Xin was with him.

"Mr. Zhang, Mr. Wang, it's been a long time."

"Mr. Tan, it's been a long time."

Zhang Yiming, who looks rather simple and honest, is much better looking than Wang Xin, who has thinning hair. Wang Xin looks very shrewd, and he does look quite mature.

Interestingly, Sequoia Capital was involved in both Meituan and ByteDance's Series C funding rounds. Currently, Meituan's investor is Ali, and Weibo unexpectedly appeared among the co-investors in ByteDance's Series C funding round.

As is well known, Sequoia Capital is an investment firm, and its investments are all for the purpose of making money. It's unlikely that it would have a bad relationship with anyone. However, overall, Sequoia Capital's relationship with the Ali Group is indeed not very good.

Or rather, they are related to the capital behind the Ali faction, with the two representing different camps.

Tan Jincheng knew that both Meituan and ByteDance eventually broke off relations with Ali's group, and the two sides gradually drifted apart.

That's not all. In May of this year, Ele.me received an $80 million investment from Dianping. However, when the food delivery war came next year, Dianping unexpectedly merged with Meituan, while Ele.me switched to Alibaba's camp and was eventually completely acquired.

It would be truly unbelievable if there wasn't someone behind this complex web of relationships.

Both sides seemed to be stealing each other's bases without losing, but Tan Jincheng, who had an omniscient perspective, knew that Ali had lost miserably. During the ride-hailing war, they lost their express car service, and during the food delivery war, although they managed to take over Ele.me, Ele.me's founder was very clear-headed and chose to take the money and run away, no longer playing with Ali.

Ultimately, Ele.me's market share was also a mixed bag.

Unlike ByteDance, which is still in its growth stage and has little future prospect, Meituan is already the dominant player in the local services sector, with a market share of nearly 60% as of November.

The transaction volume in 2014 is expected to exceed 450 billion yuan, an increase of more than 180% compared to 2013. In the life services sector, which is different from the ride-hailing sector, it is really inappropriate for Ali to jump ship and switch to Tencent with such a huge advantage.

Ultimately, it's all Alibaba's controlling nature and the idea of ​​"traffic infusion" that's to blame. You could also say that Jack Ma has gotten a bit too arrogant, not giving young people a chance and trying to incorporate everything into his own system.

Having started multiple businesses and being a second-generation rich kid, Wang Xin is not so easily controlled.

Even someone as seemingly simple-minded as Zhang Yiming is like that. If you have any control over his thoughts, he will definitely find a way to kick you out. That's how it is on Weibo.

"Hehe, Mr. Tan, I'm rich now."

Wang Xin already had some standing in the industry, while Zhang Yiming was just there to join in the fun. Although ByteDance raised $100 million in its Series C funding round, it was nothing in the volatile capital market of 2014.

It's fair to say that Xiao Zhang's current standing in the industry is even lower than that of He Jia, the CEO of Orange Live, which has already successfully gone public.

"Hmm? What do you mean? Is it a Series C funding round?"

Tan Jincheng once joked that Zhang Yiming was the stingiest founder among the companies he had invested in, and this stinginess was not only towards the company, but also towards himself.

This guy still doesn't own a house or a car, and he's still living in one of the houses that Tan Jincheng bought back then, claiming it's close enough to his commute.

He was indeed very stingy when it came to fundraising. As far as I remember, ByteDance only raised its Series D funding two years after its Series C funding, and by then Douyin had already been officially launched.

Zhang Yiming shook his head, glanced at Wang Xin, and asked, "Can you tell me?"

Wang Xin smiled and nodded.

"Haha, I do have shares in Kuxun, right? Brother Wang is already negotiating a full acquisition with them, then I'll have money."

Tan Jincheng suddenly realized that when Zhang was talking about being rich, he meant he himself was rich.

"Ha, congratulations!"

"The acquisition of Kuxun is mainly because our company is preparing to expand into the hotel and tourism industry and improve the industry chain. In addition, we also plan to build our own delivery team starting next year to further improve timeliness."

Hmm? They came prepared.

"Is it true that Meituan will be conducting its Series D funding round next year?"

Wang Xin smiled and nodded: "Building our own delivery team will require a lot of electric vehicles, and we may also need some cars. I wonder if President Tan has any further ideas about cooperating with Meituan?" Renren.com was defeated by Kaixin.com back then. Although he had a good relationship with Tan Jincheng in private, Wang Xin was still somewhat unconvinced. However, after so many years, he no longer had that mentality.

ByteDance's advertising platform has not invested in Meituan, but FlashDrive Technology and Meituan are considered strategic partners. Over the years, they have established a connection by customizing electric vehicles for Meituan.

Wang Xin has a keen eye; this year's ride-hailing war made him realize that a major battle in the food delivery sector is not far off.

With investment from Dianping and backed by Tencent, market competition is inevitable for Ele.me, so it needs to plan ahead.

On the other hand, Ali's meddling in the company's operations has made Wang Xin somewhat dissatisfied, and he has already begun to plan for the future of the group.

Sequoia Capital, Tencent Investment, and ByteDance's advertising platform form a powerful trio, often appearing and disappearing together in numerous large-scale investment areas. Contacting Tencent now would be inappropriate and could easily arouse Ali's suspicion.

However, once you establish a deeper connection with President Tan, there won't be any problems.

"Sure, I'll invest under the name of Flash Technology. That would be more appropriate. Just give me a call when the time comes."

Tan Jincheng readily agreed, which should have made Wang Xin happy.

However, when Tan Jincheng proposed to invest in the company under the name of Flash Technology, Wang Xin felt as if he had been seen through.

For the first time, he had the thought that he hadn't been wronged in losing.

Zhang Yiming scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly, explaining that his claim of having money now was merely a way to bring up the topic for Wang Xin.

Zhang Yiming still holds the patron Tan Jincheng in high regard. ByteDance's success today is inseparable from Tan Jincheng's strong support, who not only provided funding and resolved their concerns but also helped them attract later-stage investors.

From its early stages to its growth phase, ByteDance has benefited from Mr. Tan's quiet support. Of course, what he likes most is Tan Jincheng's investment style, which is to never interfere with the company's operations.

This is one of the reasons why he strongly recommended it to his friend Wang Xin.

"No problem, I'll have to trouble you then, Mr. Tan."

This conference also features unique network services. In addition to a comprehensive upgrade of the network infrastructure, the entire Wuzhen scenic area has achieved full WIFI network coverage, with two 10-gigabit and five gigabit networks.

In addition, two apps were launched. One app is open to all participants and the public. By simply opening the app, information such as the meeting location, agenda, and transportation can be seen at a glance. It also has communication and interactive functions.

The other app is designed for the hundreds of staff members working in the conference services sector, making it easier for them to work.

The three chatted idly while waiting for the opening ceremony.

Zhang Yiming asked with some curiosity, "President Tan, will you go up and give a speech?"

There's a high-level forum this afternoon, and there will definitely be speeches from representatives of major companies. They're still young and don't know who will be speaking.

"I won't speak today, but I will answer some questions. Also, I'll have a role in the China-Foreign Entrepreneurs Summit tomorrow."

Today's summit forum is themed "Interconnectivity and Shared Governance," with the main topics still being internet-related fields. The speakers were mainly from BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent), and it was time for Jack Ma, Pony Ma, and Li Keqiang to give their presentations.

Zhang Yiming asked the question naturally, and Tan Jincheng answered naturally.

Although he humbly refers to himself as "Little Karami," his status as the head of ByteDance's advertising platform is undeniable in the domestic investment community and the internet industry.

Yiche, Xiaomi, Kuaidi, ByteDance, 36Kr, and several mobile applications that have already been sold, as well as Orange Technology, Orange Live, and many other internet companies that ByteDance has invested in and controlled.

They have investments in everything from hardware to software, but upon closer analysis, most of the internet companies invested in by ByteDance's advertising platform can be categorized as "pan-media".

Xiaomi is the hardware provider and the support for all its apps; Yiche is a professional automotive media outlet, and after merging with Autohome, it became the absolute king of the domestic market; ByteDance and 36Kr are content providers.

The same applies to Orange Technology and Orange Live.

In terms of content output and media channels, ByteDance's advertising platform has been quietly developing for many years and has already secured its place in the market.

BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) are incredibly powerful, and Weibo, with its 5 million users, is currently the most powerful media channel. No matter how much money he has, he wouldn't have a share of these. However, Tan Jincheng managed to carve out a place for himself by exploiting a bug.

Moreover, it doesn't attract much attention. Although ByteDance, which he values ​​most, is getting closer and closer to success, it's not really on the list. Even when Douyin was launched in 2016, there weren't many people who were truly optimistic about it.

Kuaishou, which was established earlier, is now the company with the largest market share in the short video field. Tencent's subsequent launch of Weishi also poses a significant threat to Douyin.

For a long time after its launch, Zhang was constantly being outmaneuvered by Kuaishou, and its path to breaking through is still very long.

At 11 o'clock, the opening ceremony of the Internet Conference officially began, and the three of them separated, sitting in different places.

The high-level speeches by leaders, entrepreneurs, executives, and investors from around the world truly justify defining this conference as the World Internet Conference. In terms of our influence in 2014, it was truly unparalleled.

"The internet this year has been truly amazing."

While people were speaking on stage, they were chatting offstage. Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun were seated together in the second row, with Lei Jun on the left and Shen Nanpeng on Tan Jincheng's right.

"That's right, quite a few major dramas are related to you."

Lei Jun also expressed some emotion, noting that this young post-80s billionaire is not yet 30 years old, but his ability and influence are no longer something anyone dares to ignore.

The WeChat Red Packet surprise attack on Alipay, which is considered one of the most brilliant marketing campaigns in Tencent's history, was his creation.

At the beginning of the year, he did not participate in the competition among Dianping, Meituan, Ele.me, and Baidu Waimai in the local services sector. However, the ride-hailing war, the largest money-burning war in internet history, that followed immediately afterward, can be said to have been orchestrated by him.

As early as the end of 2012, he had already entered the ride-hailing field, and the most absurd reason was that he wanted to promote his new energy electric vehicle brand, Aion S.

Two major events that have impacted the entire internet ecosystem are closely related to him. In addition, there is the live streaming sector, which has become popular this year. Orange Live successfully went public, and both its financing and market size have surpassed YY, which he invested in.

From the BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) dispute to the AT (Alibaba, Tencent) dispute, although all three have their own interests, it can be understood as a payment dispute between the two sides.

But even the best payment system needs a carrier, and cars, or even two-wheeled electric vehicles, are the carriers, and both of these are his core businesses.

"That's right. Mr. Tan's strategic planning over the past few years has been truly brilliant. As an investor myself, I really admire him."

It's truly amazing that an investor and industrialist who operates outside the internet ecosystem can influence its ecosystem.

"Don't brag, you two big shots. I'm just a car salesman, and at most I do some investments. Your investments are no less than mine."

Shen Nanpeng is a professional investor. Lei Jun's Shunwei Capital has invested in far more companies than ByteDance. Although Lei Jun says he only invests in friends, the problem is that he really does have a lot of friends.

ByteDance's investments are different; they only focus on the supply chain and the secondary market.

Normal investment institutions naturally have secondary market fund investments, but it is rare to find one that places such emphasis on secondary market investments as ByteDance's Huge Engine. In a sense, an investment institution like ByteDance's Huge Engine seems somewhat out of place.

"You deserve such praise, don't be modest."

Lei Jun couldn't help but chuckle as he thought about Tan Jincheng, who had always disliked appearing on the rich list, suddenly appearing on it this year due to his company's IPO.

Goodness, he almost became the richest man in the country.

"Alright, alright, stop praising me. You did just as well this year. You sold 15 billion yuan in a single day on Singles' Day. I bet your performance this year has been phenomenal."

On October 30, Xiaomi officially surpassed Apple and LG to become the world's third largest mobile phone manufacturer, second only to Apple and Samsung. On November 6, Datang Telecom, a listed company, issued an announcement that its wholly-owned subsidiary licensed the SDR1860 platform it developed and owned to Beijing Pinecone Electronics Co., Ltd. for RMB 1.03 million.

This company is backed by Xiaomi; it's a chip company established by Xiaomi.

The most common criticism of Xiaomi on the internet is that they are Qualcomm's contract manufacturer and assembly plant. In reality, they started laying out various research projects, including chip development, as early as this year.

Xiaomi has technological attributes.

Also today, Xiaomi and Shunwei Capital jointly announced that Xiaomi will invest RMB 18 billion in iQiyi. Baidu also increased its investment in iQiyi. In addition, according to IDC data analysis, Xiaomi's smartphone shipments this year will exceed 6000 million units, ranking first in 2014.

In addition, they are in negotiations with Midea to acquire a stake in Midea and establish a strategic alliance. The layout of Mijia's ecosystem has already begun.

However, what Tan Jincheng found extremely frustrating was that Xiaomi officially entered the Indian market this year. He couldn't say anything about the company's specific operations, but as a shareholder, he subtly indicated that he disliked the Indian market and had never done business with India since he started doing foreign trade.

However, Xiaomi still made the move. In the long run, this move was terrible, but in this year, it did increase Xiaomi's valuation quite a bit, so it's not really a loss.

Let him be. I'm not doing it anyway. Once he's learned his lesson, he'll realize that while the Indian market is tempting, it's just a bunch of nonsense.

2014 was like the first year of change. Large companies were all running at full speed this year. Those who kept up had their own territory, while those who couldn't kept up faced great difficulties. Now we can see that the B in BAT is already somewhat outdated.

"Haha, not bad; by the way, we need to do another round of financing at the end of the year, let's find some time to talk about it then."

"No problem, no problem. Now let's hear what our richest man has to say."

Mr. Ma, who has traveled all the way from Hangzhou, is about to give a speech.

(End of this chapter)