Counterattack starts with controlling probability

The United States' regulatory difficulties soon led to new moves.

This time, they directly asked Zhang Jingren to attend a public hearing in person and answer questions from multiple officials in person.

This is not only an open pressure from the regulators, but also a clear "public display".

After receiving the news, Zhang Jingren almost threw his phone on the spot.

While cursing and calling these people "bullies", he couldn't help but call Li Hao.

"Mr. Li, they're really ruthless this time. They made me go straight to the hearing and answer questions in person!"

There was a hint of helplessness and anger in Zhang Jingren's tone.

"I haven't been able to sleep at all these past two days. Who knows what kind of trouble they'll come up with on the scene!"

Li Hao was very calm and just smiled after listening:

"Mr. Zhang, this matter isn't that complicated. They just want to see if you'll show any fear. Don't worry, I'll go with you."

"You?" Zhang Jingren frowned. "Although you did say so, how can I take you there?"

"This isn't a business meeting for us. I won't be able to help you if I go."

"Don't rush to refuse," Li Hao said confidently. "Mr. Zhang, think about it, what is it like to answer questions face to face? Not only do you have to be correct, but you also have to be flexible."

"And by being with you, I can help you pay attention to what the other person is trying to probe behind their questions. You just deal with the obvious ones, and I'll be responsible for looking at the hidden ones for you."

Zhang Jingren was silent for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "Last time it was just a technical issue. This time, facing these American idiots, are you really capable of doing this?"

Li Hao smiled and said, "Boss Zhang, I'm a lucky guy. In a crucial situation like this, with me here, you'll have a built-in buff. Believe it or not?"

Zhang Jingren rolled his eyes and muttered something like "Master of Metaphysics" but finally agreed: "Alright, I'll see how you do it."

On the day of the hearing, Zhang Jingren wore a neat dark suit, but his face was full of fatigue.

Li Hao looked relaxed and even bought himself a cup of coffee outside the venue.

"You seem quite relaxed." Zhang Jingren glanced at him, a little speechless. "I'm almost going crazy with worry, and you're still drinking coffee?"

Li Hao took a sip and said with a smile, "Mr. Zhang, the more nervous you are in this kind of situation, the easier it is for the other party to see through you."

"You have to put yourself in a state of 'everything is under control'. Even if you're feeling nervous inside, you have to appear as steady as a rock."

"That's easy for you to say." Zhang Jingren muttered softly, but still adjusted his tie a few times, trying to make himself look more confident.

After entering the venue, Zhang Jingren was quickly arranged to sit in the middle, while Li Hao sat next to him as a "consultant".

Officials walked in one after another, their expressions varying: some were indifferent, some looked scrutinizing, and a few were clearly hostile.

The first question was quickly posed: "Mr. Zhang, could you please explain in detail how TikTalk ensures user privacy and security during cross-border data transfer?"

Zhang Jingren took a deep breath and answered flawlessly:

“We strictly comply with the data privacy laws of various countries and work with multiple third-party auditing agencies to ensure that encryption and anonymization of data during transfer are in compliance with regulations.”

Li Hao nodded beside him and whispered, "Very stable."

The questions then became increasingly difficult, with one official asking directly:

“Does the algorithmic recommendation mechanism on your platform have cultural biases that lead to certain specific content being over-amplified?”

Zhang Jingren was a little stuck for a moment.

He did prepare relevant answers, but there were several pitfalls in the other party's question wording, and he might answer incorrectly if he was not careful.

At this time, Li Hao coughed lightly and whispered a reminder: "Don't explain the algorithm directly. First emphasize user diversity and avoid the other party's guidance."

Zhang Jingren reacted quickly, following Li Hao's prompt, "Our platform reaches users all over the world, so diversity is always a core principle in our content recommendations."

“We are constantly optimizing our algorithms to ensure that all content is treated fairly and not biased towards a particular preference.”

This answer made the other official raise his eyebrows and did not ask any further questions.

In the next few questions, Li Hao continued to use gentle prompts to help Zhang Jingren avoid several traps, and sometimes used gestures to hint Zhang Jingren to adjust his tone.

As the answers went smoothly, Zhang Jingren became more and more relaxed, and even began to use humor to resolve some sharp questions.

Towards the end of the hearing, an official finally posed the final question: "Mr. Zhang, what do you think if we ask TikTalk to open up the core code of all its algorithms in the short term?"

This question is obviously a "killer weapon".

Zhang Jingran's face instantly became nervous, but Li Hao gently touched his hand and whispered, "Mr. Zhang, ask him back. Ask him about the details of the other party's regulatory terms and the scope of openness."

Zhang Jingren heard the prompt and immediately adjusted his state, and asked calmly:

"Are there specific regulations on the legal basis and scope of this requirement? We are willing to cooperate, but we hope that the operating standards can be clarified."

The other party obviously didn't expect Zhang Jingren to ask this question. He was stunned for a moment and then responded vaguely: "This is still under discussion."

Zhang Jingren was now completely calm and said with a smile:

“Thank you for pointing this out, we will fully cooperate once we officially receive specific guidance.”

After the hearing, Zhang Jingren let out a long sigh and turned to look at Li Hao with a complicated expression. "Mr. Li, I'm really impressed. Why do you look like you're cheating?"

Li Hao smiled and shrugged: "Mr. Zhang, haven't I always told you? Good Luck Halo, buy one get one free."

Zhang Jingren shook his head and then smiled: "Alright, I'll treat you to a meal later, but you have to promise to follow me on occasions like this in the future!"

The two returned to the car together.

At this moment, Zhang Jingren seemed to have unloaded a huge stone, but he looked tired and relaxed.

He took off his tie, leaned against the car and breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at Li Hao next to him and said in a complicated tone, "Mr. Li, to be honest, if it weren't for you, I would have been killed by those people today."

Li Hao smiled and waved his hand: "Mr. Zhang, we are friends. Helping you with this matter is nothing. But to be honest, I still admire you very much. In this kind of situation, if it were someone else, they would have lost their composure long ago."

Zhang Jingren shook his head. "Stop praising me! If you hadn't reminded me several times today, I wouldn't have been able to answer half of those questions. Seriously, what's wrong with you?"

Li Hao smiled mysteriously and said, "It's not that I have any cheats. I just have a lot of experience and have seen a lot, so I naturally know how to deal with it."

The atmosphere in the car relaxed a little. Zhang Jingren closed his eyes for a moment, then turned to look at Li Hao:

"Mr. Li, I have to say, you've really impressed me today. I didn't take the idea of ​​collaborating on building a public opinion database that you mentioned earlier seriously, but now I think we can have a good chat."

When Li Hao heard this, he was overjoyed, but on the surface he remained calm:

"Mr. Zhang, this cooperation isn't a spur-of-the-moment decision. It's a strategy I've carefully considered."

"By combining TikTalk's user behavior data with Rising Star Investment's analytical model, we can build an unprecedented market sentiment database."

"It will be of great help in investment decision-making, hot trend analysis, and even public opinion response."

Zhang Jingren nodded, his tone no longer as perfunctory as before: "Indeed, I have thought about it carefully. TikTalk's scale and data coverage do have unique advantages."

"But you have to tell me, what specific problems can this collaboration solve? Also, how will we ensure security and compliance?"

Li Hao had anticipated this question and immediately responded, "Mr. Zhang, this can be done in the same way as the previous collaboration between Noah Technology and Amazon."

"The data does not need to be transferred across borders, nor does it involve specific user privacy. We only do trend modeling and sentiment extraction. The entire process is audited by a third-party organization to ensure compliance."

"Also," Li Hao paused and continued, "the results of the database will be shared between TikTalk and New Star Investment."

"For you, this means optimizing the platform's recommendation mechanism and expanding the business model; for us, it means further upgrading our investment strategy."

"Most importantly, this project can also help TikTalk to some extent to resist external difficulties."

"Think about it, if you can prove that our data technology is positively driving industry development, regulators won't dare to take action against you."

Zhang Jingren fell into deep thought.

His brows were furrowed, obviously weighing the pros and cons. Li Hao didn't disturb him and waited quietly.

After a few minutes, Zhang Jingren raised his head and looked at Li Hao, his tone becoming much more serious:

"You have a point. If this kind of cooperation is done well, it will indeed be of great help to me. But I still have some concerns - after all, this is a cross-border cooperation, and there can be no regulatory risks at all."

Li Hao was well prepared: "Mr. Zhang, you can rest assured about this. The technical team of New Star Investment is very experienced in compliance, and we will develop a cooperation plan that fully complies with local laws. All details will be open and transparent."

"If there are any uncertainties, we can start with a small-scale pilot and then gradually expand it if the pilot is successful."

Zhang Jingren nodded after hearing this. "A pilot project is a good idea. The risks are manageable, and we can also see the actual effects of the cooperation."

"How about this? Have your team come up with a preliminary plan, and I'll have my technical and legal teams evaluate it first. If there's no problem, we can give it a try."

"No problem, Mr. Zhang!" Li Hao said with a hint of joy, "This cooperation will definitely be a win-win situation."

Zhang Jingren glanced at him and suddenly smiled: "Mr. Li, you are really a good talker."

"But to be honest, today's hearing has given me a little more confidence. If this cooperation is as good as you said, I will thank you very much later."

"Mr. Zhang, you're welcome." Li Hao smiled harmlessly. "If we can cooperate, we'll all benefit. But if you really want to thank me, why not treat me to a nice meal?"

Zhang Jingren burst into laughter. "Alright! If it works, I'll get you a steak at a top-notch steakhouse and leave you hanging on to the wall!"