Free Web NovelChapter 1348: Chapter 645: Code Is the Most Valuable Asset
Musk and his entourage reached Yixing Company, where they were received by the staff, and after waiting for about two hours, they finally met with Zhao Yi.
Zhao Yi had a busy schedule as he had visited Zhengyang University to personally discuss the establishment of a new specialty course. The name of the specialty was not "Space Transportation Technology"—that name was too "grand". Since the course was targeted at specific skills, the settled name was "Electronic Beam Arrangement and Cryptography", meaning the use of cryptography to set the arrangement of beams.
Zhengyang University placed great importance on the new specialty, and the university had agreed on a collaboration with Yixing Company, assuring that at least half of the first three graduating classes would be guaranteed employment at Yixing Company.
This partnership gave Zhengyang University peace of mind and would make "Electronic Beam Arrangement and Cryptography" one of the university’s most popular specialty courses.
In addition, Zhao Yi also arranged for several of the company’s technical staff to take on part-time roles as lecturers for the specialty course at Zhengyang University.
Once everything was settled, he returned to the company to attend to the reception.
Musk and his team had been waiting for a long time, but they weren’t in a hurry, knowing that Zhao Yi, as the world’s leading scientist who also ran his own company, was understandably very busy.
Upon returning to the company, Zhao Yi saw Musk and approached him apologetically, "I’m sorry for the wait. I was a bit tied up just now, and I’ve only managed to come now."
The two sides exchanged pleasantries. ƒreewebɳovel.com
Zhao Yi then led the visitors on a tour around the company.
What primarily interested Musk and his group was the Unlimited Power Automobile, a vehicle not available for sale abroad. Until now, they had not seen a finished product, only catching glimpses through a glass window of several cool-looking cars parked in a vacant area outside.
During the tour, Musk couldn’t help but point to a car outside the window and asked, "Is that the Unlimited Power Automobile, right?"
"As you see," Zhao Yi confirmed.
"That’s very cool," Musk complimented.
"Thank you," Zhao Yi replied.
Intrigued, Musk asked, "May I inquire which designer’s work is the exterior design from?"
Car exterior design is a complex art, yet the field of automotive designers is rather niche due to very low market demand. Many people engaged in car exterior design struggle to find employment.
For this reason, a top-notch car exterior designer becomes highly sought after.
Many small car manufacturers do not have professional exterior designers, and their car designs are often ’copied and modified’.
Musk was astounded by the design of the Unlimited Power Automobile. After only a glance, he could tell it was a creation of a top-level designer.
Zhao Yi smiled and said, "I designed it."
"You?" Musk expressed surprise, mouth agape before exclaiming, "I had no idea, Doctor Zhao, that you were also proficient in car exterior design and that you’ve created such a perfect work!"
He addressed Zhao Yi as ’Doctor’ out of respect for his status as a top-level scientist and as an academic honorific.
Zhao Yi responded modestly, "It’s nothing," and then continued, "I suppose you are interested in the automobile, right? Let me just take you to see the car then!"
Musk immediately smiled, "Thank you! That’s precisely why we’re here."
Zhao Yi led them outside to a parked Unlimited Power Automobile. He personally lifted the front and rear hoods, pointing out different parts and explaining, "Our design employs a central battery for power supply with two electric motors, one in the front and one in the back. The main energy compartment is located under the rear seats, directly connected to the more powerful rear motor, saving space and not making the chassis too high."
"Since it’s not purely electric-driven, the car’s battery doesn’t occupy much space and doesn’t make the chassis appear too high," he added.
He gave a brief explanation and had someone open the bottom to dismantle the light energy converter.
"This is the main energy device; its specific construction is, of course, confidential at the moment. It can provide a continuous supply of power up to 45KW," he revealed.
These specifications immediately amazed Musk and his colleagues.
"Are you certain? Is it this one?" amazed, Musk approached, "May I touch it?"
"Of course, you can," Zhao Yi replied.
Zhao Yi stepped aside, allowing Musk to feel the device, though just touching it certainly wouldn’t reveal much. Musk lost interest after a few touches. ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
The group then returned to the office area and went straight into the conference room.
Now came the crucial part.
Musk began discussing the technology that Tesla possessed and Tesla’s dominance in the electric vehicle sector, including the number of high-end patents it held, its battery technology development, and of course the most important part—the development of an integrated vehicle system.
The performance, system, and control aspects of electric cars manufactured by Tesla were already at the international forefront thanks to their focus on electric vehicles and their comprehensive technological expertise in the field.
After Musk finished speaking, he directly proposed, "The reason my team and I came here is to seek a partnership with Yixing."
"What do you have in mind?" Zhao Yi inquired.
"The Unlimited Power Automobile isn’t perfect," Musk stated. "While your company holds unimaginable technology, there are deficiencies in other areas, such as power supply, control systems, and if I’m not mistaken, you likely haven’t developed automated driving technology. In these realms, we can cooperate."
