Microsoft's future is limitless. If you can get it now, it's better to get it first. But even if you can't, it doesn't really matter. When Paul Allen is diagnosed with cancer next year, he will need a lot of money for treatment. This is One opportunity is to buy the other party's stocks, and the other is to wait until Microsoft goes public.
Microsoft began to dominate the world in the mid-1990s, and when it first went public, its market capitalization was only a few hundred million U.S. dollars. At most, it could cost tens of millions of U.S. dollars to acquire on the stock market. However, acquisitions on the stock market are always limited. It's better to do it in advance.
In the next few days, after Chen Zhiwen visited Washington State, news came from Microsoft's top executives that Bill Gates and others agreed to accept investment, but only accepted 7.5% of the amount.
In this regard, Chen Zhiwen also agreed. He would get it first and then take 10% of it. There is room for bargaining. Now Microsoft's business has developed normally. It is not a newly established company and it is impossible to sell a considerable share. If Midea itself had not been of great value and had provided a generous amount of low-interest loans, ordinary investors would not have had a chance.
The contract between the two parties was drafted by a team of professional lawyers, and then the two parties signed a cooperation agreement. Midea's Hong Kong head office personally invested and obtained 5% of Microsoft's shares. It also provided an interest-free loan of US$10 million to help Microsoft conduct new research and development. , and, to a certain extent, Microsoft and Midea will also license or exchange many patents in the future, similar to the previous cooperation between Midea and Apple.
After reaching the cooperation, Chen Zhiwen hosted a banquet for all Microsoft executives at the local InterContinental Hotel to celebrate.
The next day, Chen Zhiwen left a team from Midea to discuss the feasibility of technical cooperation with Microsoft, and then went to Detroit, the city of automobiles.
Those who came to pick him up were naturally AMC's top executives. CEO Jim Hughes and Vice President Gu Dehua both came in person. The group soon arrived at AMC's headquarters.
After arriving at Chen Zhiwen's office, the blond secretary served coffee to several people.
After Chen Zhiwen took a sip, he said: "On the road just now, I saw a lot of special trucks transporting cars. Recently, the automobile industry in Detroit has begun to recover?"
"Yes, the oil crisis is finally over and oil prices have begun to fall. Although it has just begun, the confidence of the automobile industry has returned." Gu Dehua nodded.
"Well, oil prices have dropped, and we have also obtained some of Chrysler's technology and 330 automotive terminal retail stores. Our cars can finally be sold normally." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
Everything went according to plan. After AMC and Chrysler discussed purchasing technology patents, Chen Zhiwen entrusted Morgan Stanley to quickly acquire Chrysler's 330 sales outlets. Because oil prices were at their peak at the time, Chrysler The pressure was so great that these stores, originally valued at US$300 million, were finally sold for US$278 million. At the same time, at the request of Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca, Chen Zhiwen also invested US$300 million in Chrysler Corporation and obtained 11% of the shares.
However, this is just a purely economic investment. There is no need for him to really involve himself in this kind of automobile giant that involves millions of dollars in American business. In two years, the price of oil will plummet, and American consumers will fall in love with large cars again. , coupled with Lee Iacocca's own strong ability, Chrysler will also come back to life. By then, it will be enough to obtain several times the income on the stock.
"Yes, judging from terminal data, Jeep sales have begun to recover recently, but AMC's normal sedans are only slightly better than before." Gu Dehua said.
"Normally, no matter what the oil price is, AMC cars are always on the fuel-saving route, but they are not rivals of Japanese cars. They can survive now. In two years, Toyota will invest in and build a factory in the United States, and that will be the real trouble. "Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
Before there were Japanese cars, AMC relied on its fuel-saving route to stave off competition from the Big Three. But when Japanese cars began to enter the U.S. market, AMC, which followed the same route as Japanese cars but could not compete, no matter whether the gas price was high or low. It is doomed to face huge pressure. In the original history, the French Renault Automobile Company acquired AMC, but after several years of support, it still had no choice but to sell it to Chrysler.
"This is indeed a big trouble, but there seems to be nothing we can do for the time being." Gu Dehua also said with some worry.
"The only way is to use turbocharging technology. Once this technology can be used in cars, it will be possible to use a smaller engine while ensuring the same power, and at the same time reduce fuel consumption." Chen Zhiwen said: "Turbine The supercharged R&D team has been established, right? How is the recent progress?"
"It has been established for three months. We have recently made a finished product in the laboratory, but it is still not good in terms of materials. The lifespan is too short and it cannot withstand various extreme tests." Gu Dehua said.
"In terms of materials, can't we purchase them directly from other companies?" Chen Zhiwen asked.
"Our team investigated companies around the world that may have patents on this material, and finally found General Electric, but they seemed to look down on us and were reluctant to cooperate with us. We didn't even get a sample of this material." Gu Dehua said.
"What materials? Isn't it okay to buy the finished product directly from the market?" Chen Zhiwen asked.
"No, because this material is used in aircraft engines. It is specifically heat-resistant and wear-resistant. It is basically not used elsewhere. We contacted General Electric's aviation department, but they were unwilling to give us samples. Currently, we are still Let’s see if we can get samples to test first, and if so, we can find ways to cooperate,” Gu Dehua said.
"Turbochargers do work in high-temperature environments. General industries may not necessarily have such materials, but General Electric is not the only one in the world that can make aero engines, right? Can we look for other companies?" Chen Zhiwen asked .
"After asking, there are actually only a few companies in the world that can build high-end aero engines. In Europe, there are Rolls-Royce of the United Kingdom and Dassault of France. These two companies are even less willing to give us this kind of material." Gu Dehua said.
"That's right, our relationship with Europe is even worse." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said, "Let's spend more money and find a way to get samples to test first. If it can really meet our requirements, then we will come forward. Contact GE.
GE's aviation department also engages in R&D, design and assembly. Even if the high-performance materials are developed by them, they are certainly not produced by them themselves. They follow the lead and find suppliers first, and then find ways to get samples. "
"Okay..." Gu Dehua nodded and said: "Actually, we are almost following this path. We have consulted many large steel mills in the United States. They do not have this kind of material. I guess it is produced overseas. , or it is produced by a small professional steel factory.”
"Okay, if you have definite information, tell me that a company like General Electric has a strong technical foundation. It will be good for us to cooperate with them. I also have plans in this regard. It just happens to be solved at once." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
(End of chapter)
