2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 850 Another memorable scene
"How boring. Old Ma's speech wasn't as sharp as last year's."

"Look at the scale this year, does he still dare to spout nonsense like he did last year?"

With Zhou Hongyi on his left and Lei Jun on his right, Tan Jincheng was assigned to the middle of these two old rivals this year. Zhou Hongyi was the one who spoke to Tan Jincheng, and he also looked quite amused.

Lei Jun, on the right, was listening attentively.

Such large-scale events are often more solemn in their second edition than in the first. Compared to last year, this year's World Internet Conference had a more solemn atmosphere.

The main reason was the large number of important figures present: eight foreign leaders, nearly 50 foreign ministers, and representatives from over 120 countries and regions, including heads of more than 20 international organizations.

In addition, more than 600 leading figures from internet companies, internet celebrities, experts, scholars and other people from all walks of life participated.

"If you put it that way, I think I'll fall asleep in a bit."

Old Ma is still the same Old Ma. Wuzhen is like his backyard. His speech is still as fluent as ever. But compared to his high spirits and outspokenness last year, Old Ma's speech this year seems much more "moderate".

They keep repeating the same old argument about whether or not the internet needs regulation, without offering any clear perspective.

If it were last year, he would have already expressed his opinion.

Lei Jun quickly reminded him, "Don't fall asleep! There are a lot of reporters here. It would be really embarrassing if they took pictures."

Zhou Hongyi, who was always arrogant, curled her lips and said, "So what if I want to sleep? I'm almost asleep anyway."

In contrast to the booming Chinese concept stocks in 2014, they encountered a collective winter in 2015, with more than 80% of them plummeting. Zhou Hongyi's 360 was no exception, with its stock price halved and its current market value around 8 billion US dollars.

On June 17th of this year, Zhou Hongyi, who had been repeatedly targeted by short sellers, stopped arguing and 360 initiated its privatization and delisting process.

That said, so far this year, a total of 11 Chinese companies listed in the US have initiated the process of privatization and delisting, with 360 being the largest of them.

Wall Street's attitude towards domestic internet companies has changed significantly, shifting from focusing on storytelling to evaluating performance. Most of the 11 companies that were delisted had little to no performance. While 360 ​​does hold a high position in the security field, its performance has indeed been lackluster.

Many delisted Chinese concept stocks are in the same situation. Although Chinese concept stocks with good performance have been affected, they have not fallen much. Among them, "gaming stocks" that have been given attention, such as pig farms, have even surged by more than 80%.

Although Orange Technology's stock price fell by more than 15% throughout the year, its overall market value still exceeded that of 360, ranking fifth in the domestic Internet market value.

In addition, and most importantly, Orange Technology's controlling shareholder is wealthy and well-connected, so Wall Street capital dared not short it on a large scale. During the first round of short selling, before Tan Jincheng could even react, the deep-pocketed Tencent had already increased its holdings.

"You guys keep listening, I'm going out for some fresh air."

After listening for a while longer, Tan Jincheng really couldn't stand the long and tedious monotonous rhetoric anymore; he was really going to fall asleep if he listened any longer.

"Be careful, and if you go out, be discreet so that you don't get photographed by reporters."

Lei Jun reminded him that he still takes good care of this partner and his younger brother with whom he has a personal relationship. There have always been rumors that Tan Jincheng and Lao Ma do not get along well, and in fact, the two have not had a very deep cooperation in their collaboration.

If reporters were to photograph Tan Jincheng wandering around outside during Lao Ma's speech, it would have a negative impact on the conference.

Tan Jincheng nodded: "I know. I'll go hide in the lounge for a while. If any reporters see me, I'll say that there's an emergency at the company."

Zhou Hongyi turned her head and glanced at Tan Jincheng, then smiled.

A few years ago, she clashed head-on with Pony Ma, and in recent years she has been going back and forth with Lei Jun. She has been able to stand out in the clashes between two generations of leading figures in the internet industry. She is far from being as reckless as she appears in the media.

He was indeed combative, and he was somewhat envious of Tan Jincheng's departure; to be honest, he also wanted to leave, but he couldn't.

The young man displayed his personality and arrogance on certain occasions, which was a source of pride unique to Tan Jincheng.

360 has its own authority in security, and they also have cooperative relationships with companies under Tan Jincheng. He quite likes this young man; he's straightforward and doesn't mince words.

Affected by continuous short selling, Zhou Hongyi has not had a very comfortable year. However, their delisting is far from as simple as it seems. As an authority in domestic security, it is indeed not appropriate for them to be listed on the US stock market again.

But who can resist the benefits? From a capital perspective, listing on Wall Street is definitely better than listing domestically.

He particularly admired Tan Jincheng for this. When Gaode was only questioned about data security by some media, he decisively initiated the privatization and delisting process, giving up Gaode's interests in the capital market.

After being delisted, Gaode Maps did not suffer much due to the lack of capital market support. With the help of Tan Jincheng's connections, Gaode Maps firmly maintained its leading position in the basic map market with a market share of 32.6%.

Currently, Gaode Maps has integrated with the factory navigation services of almost all mainstream manufacturers. Even Baidu cannot compare in this area. Tan Jincheng has too strong a network of connections in the automotive sector.

In addition, with the rapid development of local services such as ride-hailing, food delivery, and express delivery, internet companies are becoming increasingly reliant on map service providers, making Amap, which holds the largest market share, increasingly important.

Almost every internet company that wants to get involved in local services has to rely on Amap (Gaode Maps).

Tan Jincheng, also an entrepreneur from Zhejiang Province, went to Shenzhen and Beijing to seek cooperation with Tencent and Xiaomi, but did not show much willingness to cooperate deeply with Ali, which is right on his doorstep. This is somewhat abnormal.

Since Sun Tongyu joined Orange Technology, Ali and Orange Technology have had occasional conflicts. During the "Collect Blessings" battle, they even engaged in a war of words, almost pointing fingers at each other and accusing each other of plagiarism.

The rumors circulating in the industry are true; Lao Ma and Tan Jincheng do not get along.

In terms of the foundation of the internet business, Orange Technology is not even comparable to a larger subsidiary of Ali. The two are not even in the same league, but Lao Ma (Jack Ma) does not dare to fall out with him.

Besides Tan Jincheng's strength in physical enterprises, the most important thing is that Tan Jincheng owns Gaode Maps.

If things really turn sour, Tan Jincheng, who has shown a tough stance in his several conflicts with Ali, might very well have Gaode Maps completely sever its cooperative relationship with Ali.

Although doing so would cause Gaode a great loss, it was no big deal for Tan Jincheng, who was financially powerful and had no performance pressure.

Don't forget he's a young man.

Isn't it normal for young people to be a little impulsive?
"You little rascal, haha, you even managed to create a memorable moment by leaving halfway through, it's hilarious."

As night fell, another top-tier dinner party was held, organized by Ding Sanshi.

Compared to last year, this time there were more top figures supporting Ding Sanshi's dinner party. Last year, apart from Zhang Yiming and He Xiaopeng, all the other elderly people who participated came.

In addition, Tencent's group has been added this year, with Pony Ma leading Zhang Sanshi and others, as well as the CEO of a certain company and other big names.

The topic of discussion right now is the photo of Lei Jun glaring at Zhou Hongyi.

"Haha, bro, what were you thinking back then?"

Zhou Hongyi eventually fell asleep. He was so drowsy from listening that he didn't care who was on stage. Lei Jun glanced at him unintentionally, which was captured by reporters at the scene and has now spread across the internet.

Lei Jun looked helpless: "I just glanced at him and thought, 'How come this old guy is asleep?' I even reminded you before, but you ran away, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to take the picture."

"Haha, thank goodness I ran away, otherwise this famous scene would have been lost. Wouldn't that be a good thing for you?"

At last year's Internet Conference, Lei Jun stood around like a thug, able to criticize anyone he could get his hands on. But this year, with a net worth of 800 billion yuan and Xiaomi's industrial chain already taking shape, Lei Jun is no longer the same Lei Jun from last year.

"No way, I have to give you guys a thumbs up, haha."

This picture had been circulating for many years in his previous life. Tan Jincheng found it more and more amusing the more he looked at it. These two had even challenged each other to a fight. Speaking of which, Lei Jun was the one who chickened out back then. Their feud was no less than that between Zhou Hongyi and Little Ma.

"Hey Pony Ma, why don't you give this a like too? Let's boost the popularity of our CEO Lei."

"Haha, thumbs up, thumbs up, Xiao Ma, you should give it a thumbs up too."

The center of the buzz was Weibo, and Weibo's CEO was also at the dinner party. He couldn't be happier to make the buzz even bigger, and he couldn't be happier with Tan Jincheng's attitude of enjoying the drama.

Weibo is still part of the Alibaba system. There were very few people from Alibaba who were explicitly mentioned at Ding Shi's dinner party. Cao Wei was an exception. As a member of the first generation of portal websites, Cao Wei had a good personal relationship with Ding Shi, a physics PhD, and others.

Looking back at previous years' Three Stones Dinner parties, there have indeed been very few Alibaba-affiliated companies present.

Wherever there are people, there is a world of its own.

"I'm not ordering. Xiao Tan, you can order whatever you want. Also, can you please stop calling me Brother Ma? Can't you respect me a little? What's wrong with calling me Brother Ma?"

At the table of people, Little Ma was currently urging them to drink. He wouldn't like anything on Weibo, and besides, Tan Jincheng had already ruined his nickname, Little Ma.

"What a powerful name! Fine, if you won't click, I will. Hehe, let's see who gets the most likes and give them a thumbs up."

The three-day Internet conference had many memorable moments, but compared to last year's brilliant debates, Tan Jincheng felt that something was missing.

"Perhaps my mindset has changed?" On the third day, as usual last year, Wei Lai will showcase some new technologies during the conference. This year, Wei Lai's theme is autonomous driving, which is co-organized with Baidu.

Baidu's Lao Li noticed that Tan Jincheng seemed a bit listless, so he asked him why.

Tan Jincheng's explanation surprised him somewhat. "So you want to see the show, kid? Last year, he and Lei Jun were both the ones who made fools of themselves."

"Probably. Speaking of which, the food delivery war has been really fierce lately. Baidu, how about buying some of our company's electric bikes? Meituan and Eleme have already bought some."

Nuomi.com can hold out for another year or two. If they keep going like this, they're finished. Now's the time to take advantage of their deals.

"We don't yet have the capacity to build our own delivery team like Meituan does. Besides, we have partners, and Aima's prices are cheaper than yours."

“Then we can lower the price too. It’s the end of the year, so let’s boost sales. Besides, our technical support is something that Aima can’t compare to.”

"Next, we will consider designing our two-wheeled electric vehicles to be more intelligent. In addition, we have a great advantage in terms of batteries. Think about it, charging your vehicle while delivering takeout would affect your efficiency."

"You're talking nonsense. Doesn't your electric car need to be charged?"

This kid is talking nonsense just to sell a few more electric bikes. It's unbelievable. He doesn't have the mindset of a billionaire at all.

"Here's what we'll do: have Mr. Zhang talk to Nuomi's CEO. If he can get it done, that's his skill. I can only give him a heads-up; I can't interfere too much with how it's actually run."

"Haha, thanks then. I'll talk to Lao Zhang, but with Brother Li's help, it'll definitely be useful."

While car sales have been strong in recent years, the total sales volume of two-wheeled electric vehicles has remained relatively stable, hovering around 2000 million units for several consecutive years since it surpassed 2200 million units.

The annual sales of tricycles have remained at around 800 million units. Driven by the so-called consumption upgrade, more C-end users are buying cars.

In summary, the competitors of two-wheeled electric vehicles are not only other electric vehicles, but also A00-class new energy vehicles. With a very low down payment and monthly loan payments of one or two thousand yuan or even less, one can own a small car that provides shelter from the wind and rain. Office workers with a certain economic capacity are naturally more willing to choose such new energy vehicles.

To maintain its leading sales position, FlashTech needs to develop more B-end users, just like the Aion series has for the ride-hailing market.

In the two-wheeled electric vehicle market, FlashTech currently holds a market share of approximately 19.5%, with annual sales generally exceeding 400 million units. If FlashTech wants to achieve even higher sales figures, Nuomi is the best option, given its willingness to be taken advantage of.

"I'm really fed up with you. Last night you randomly liked and joined in the fun, and today you're doing this again. You're a well-known figure, can you please stop putting on this act in front of us? Your public image is very composed."

This guy's really stuck with him; even the handsome Li is impressed.

"Hehe, older brothers, please support my business. Besides, my business doesn't conflict with yours at all. If my products sell well, it's a good thing for you too."

Last night, he liked the famous photo of Lei Jun in red clothes, which immediately boosted the popularity to a new level.

As the youngest billionaire among this year's Internet Conference, and one of the focal points of the conference, he showcased the Yuechi A1 with numerous records. His participation in the event further excited netizens.

"I heard that Boss Tan was sitting between Lei Jun and Zhou Hongyi, but he left halfway through the meal because of an urgent matter at the company."

"Haha, this year's Lao Ma really didn't have much skill. His speech skills are quite good, but it's long and tedious, which doesn't fit his persona at all."

"I still miss how arrogant he was last year, saying things like if you're still excited about the sales figures for Double Ten, then you've failed."

"That's not cool enough. The coolest line is when we say we need to train more Jing Dongs. That's a real killer move."

Unlike others, Li from Baidu is more outgoing; his personality is relatively more introverted.

However, we agree with Tan Jincheng's statement that it is more beneficial for them if his products sell well. Taking the current cooperation on autonomous driving technology as an example, the launch of the Weilai ES8 has not only boosted the stock price of Weilai Co., Ltd.

Baidu's stock price also rose continuously after the release of the ES8, which has the deepest cooperation with Weilai in the field of autonomous driving. Wall Street interprets the release of Weilai ES8 as one of the positive factors for Baidu.

"Is this what you often refer to as the internet supporting real industries?"

"That's roughly the idea. Internet companies have a natural advantage in terms of traffic and cash flow, but whether we can transform and utilize these advantages to revitalize our economy and create jobs is a big problem."

"I actually admire Baidu quite a bit. Although you also lend money, you have always placed great importance on technology. You always invest huge sums of money in development and research when an industry is emerging."

"Alright, that's enough. I know what you're going to say."

Tan Jincheng quickly waved his hand and said, "No, no, I really didn't mean that today. My admiration is genuine. Take self-driving cars for example. Everyone knows that it's basically unrealistic to fully commercialize this technology at this stage. The same goes for AI. But you are willing to invest."

If we can persevere, things might turn out very differently.

"Then tell me specifically what problems we've encountered? Are there any good ways to improve them?"

Baidu has many high-quality projects, from its early main search engine to Baidu Tieba, as well as a series of investments. In the early stages, they were able to stay in the same camp as the other two companies, but as time went on, they fell behind or were eliminated.

Li, the handsome young man, was somewhat discouraged by this.

Tan Jincheng thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps you're going in the wrong direction. It's not wrong to value technology. We at Weilai also value technology and technical talent. But how to apply technology to business is a very profound issue."

Baidu's inability to retain talent stems not only from Li Keqiang's own abilities, but also from the fact that while these individuals are highly skilled in technical development, they seem to lack the expertise to effectively utilize their skills.

As a highly skilled individual, if you work hard to produce research but don't know how to maximize its effectiveness, it's only natural that you'd rather leave and find a new path.

Wei Lai, along with Tan Jincheng and other companies, has an internal incubation process. In addition to providing certain benefits to the developers, if they encounter technologies that they can no longer use themselves, they will also be supported in starting their own businesses.

Just like Orange Live, Orange Live did not fit Orange Technology's own plans, so Tan Jincheng invested money in He Jia.

As for higher-level talents, if they want to leave the company, Tan Jincheng will also find ways to tie their interests together. For example, even without the Pinduoduo project, it was only a matter of time before Sun Tongyu left.

Because the platform of Orange Products Club was no longer enough to retain him, Tan Jincheng supported his departure and would try to find a way to tie his interests together with him, so that he would not leave the company but remain a part of it.

As Pinduoduo's strategist, he would definitely side with Huang Zheng when it comes to internal interests, but if we set those aside, he would definitely side with Tan Jincheng when it comes to the interests of other shareholders.

Tan Jincheng doesn't own many shares in Pinduoduo, but because of his relationship with Sun Tongyu, he has considerable influence, even though he has never exercised it.

Showcasing the most advanced intelligent driving and autonomous driving technologies to the world at the Internet Conference has a publicity effect comparable to a press conference that costs tens of millions of yuan, especially since it's an opportunity to appear in front of bigwigs. Even the handsome Mr. Li was beaming with pride.

"Hehe, thank you, brother. Without your ES8, we wouldn't know how to brag about our self-driving technology. Next time we go to Beijing, I'll treat you to drinks."

After the press conference ended, a beaming Lao Li put his arm around Tan Jincheng's shoulder.

"Internet products need a platform to achieve their maximum effect. Just like an app, no matter how good it is, it still needs a mobile phone to run it smoothly. What I do is provide that platform for you."

"Indeed, it seems we need to deepen our cooperation in the future; by the way, there's an opportunity now, would you like to join us?"

Aside from maps, Baidu and Tan Jincheng's company have no specific conflicts of interest. Besides, Baidu Maps can also be integrated into car navigation, so everyone can compete fairly.

Just like Tencent and Xiaomi, it seems that a deeper connection with Tan Jincheng would be more in the interests of both parties.

In addition, Tan Jincheng, along with Tencent and Xiaomi, collaborated with multiple international investment institutions to make investments, earning a fortune, which Tan Jincheng greatly envied.

2015 was a year of mergers. From the dating market to the food delivery industry and the ride-hailing industry, companies of all sizes were merging. How to protect their own interests during the merger process was the biggest consideration for BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent).

Xiao Ma was right. They were the ones who took the lead and paid for it, but Tan Jincheng, who secretly followed behind, always managed to find some equipment by magic.

Investing requires vision, but it also requires luck. Perhaps Tan Jincheng's luck is extraordinary, as he always seems to find good opportunities.

"Hmm? What chance?"

Apart from the sale of 91 Assistant, which was a capital-level cooperation with Baidu, all other cooperation with Baidu has been based on business. Mr. Li's investment style is similar to that of Ali, who prefers to work alone.

This is like extending an olive branch to myself, but I wonder what kind of project it is.

"Come on, while we still have some time, let's find a place to talk this over carefully. There really is such a great opportunity right now, but I don't know if you're willing to take it."

"Of course, this opportunity is also beneficial to you, Wei Lai; don't worry, you are familiar with the project."

Tan Jincheng glanced at Boss Li and roughly understood which one he was referring to.

"Alright, let's go. I'll treat you to a meal. I'm not qualified to host a gathering, but since we're in Zhejiang Province, I'm one of the hosts."

(End of this chapter)