My Age of Investment

   Chapter 1533 Tai Li Speed

   "My God, it actually flew."

   "Success, it's amazing!"

   "Cool, this is the transportation of the future!"

  …

   At a small private airport in Boston, a strange all-white aircraft took off, and the crowd watching on the ground instantly burst into exclamations.

  Under the gaze of countless eyes, the aircraft that looked like a small plane flew higher and higher until it became a small black spot in the sky.

   Ivanka put down the telescope in her hand and glanced at Xia Jingxing next to him, who was still watching silently with a pair of telescopes, and seemed to be very interested in this aircraft.

   "Don't look, it's already far away."

   Hearing the words, Xia Jingxing finally put down the telescope in his hand and said with a smile, "It's the first time I've seen a "flying car" lift off, so it's inevitable that I'm a little curious."

   "I'm also curious, would anyone be willing to buy this strange-looking aircraft home?"

   Ivanka spread her hands, "If it was me, I would definitely not dare to drive such an exciting vehicle."

  Xia Jingxing smiled and said nothing.

Hearing Ivanka's words, a young white man walked over with a smile, "Miss Friedrich reminded you rightly, Terrafugia's next step to improve its technology and products is to make Transition civilian and simple. and security.

When the Wright brothers invented the airplane 107 years ago, the outside world thought it was dangerous and unreliable, but with continuous technological improvement, flying an airplane gradually became a fashionable aerial sport. , has become an important tool to change human transportation.

  I believe that our flying car will also go through such a development process, from being puzzled by people to being a niche favorite, and then being loved by the public. "

  Ivanka felt a little disapproving in her heart. The reason why airplanes were popularized so quickly was because people at that time had no choice at all. The only tools that humans made that could fly to the sky were hot air balloons and airships.

   Now that the aircraft manufacturing technology is so mature, who would choose to buy a flying car that has not been proven by the market and time? Is it uncomfortable to sit on various small planes such as helicopters?

  Ivanka knew that this flying car R&D and manufacturing company named Terrafugia had investment from Xia Jingxing, so she just complained a few words in her heart and did not explain the various defects.

  Xia Jingxing smiled and looked at the man in front of him who was almost the same age as him and Ivanka.

   This guy's name is Carl Dietrich. He graduated from MIT's Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics with a bachelor's degree and a Ph.D. During his school days, he participated in many spacecraft design competitions and won awards. He is a scholar in the eyes of people.

   But this guy not only has good academic performance, but also has a strong practical ability. At the age of 17, he became a licensed private pilot and aircraft designer.

   At the same time, he is a member of ASTM, the American committee that develops certification standards for light aircraft, and the chairman of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association's Committee on Simplified Vehicle Operations.

   Having won so many honors at a young age, of course, he has to do a big job.

So in 2006, when he was just graduating from the Ph.D., Carl called four MIT classmates together to set up a flying car research and development and manufacturing company Terrafugia. Power Flying Car", "Tali Flying Car".

  Carl, who is determined to change the world, started his business smoothly. The first-generation flying car Transition developed was successfully tested last year.

   However, being able to fly does not mean that the product can be turned into a commodity. The flying car with rough appearance and interior still needs to go through many product iterations and product polishing before it can be brought to the market, and market acceptance is also a problem.

   When Carl was troubled by the lack of research and development funds for upgrades and iterations, DJI UAV, a subsidiary of China's Fuxing Industrial Holdings Group, threw an olive branch to Taili Flying Car Company.

   After negotiation and negotiation, DJI invested 2 million US dollars in the company and obtained a 20% stake.

   Therefore, Carl's attitude towards the big gold owner Xia Jingxing is still very respectful. Seeing that Xia Jingxing has not spoken, he took the initiative to ask, "Daren, do you think there is any room for improvement in our products?"

How could Xia Jingxing understand this? He quickly waved to Li Zexiang and Wang Tao who were on the side, called both of them over, and said, "Carl asked me to give advice, but I'm a layman of flying cars, so you professionals should communicate more. ."

  Li Zexiang said with a smile: "I think the biggest problem is still on the road. It seems that the Taili flying car has not yet obtained the test certification of the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and FMV (Federal Motor Vehicle Administration)?"

  Karl explained calmly: "We are already preparing for the test certification, and when the product completes the second iteration, we will formally submit the application materials.

   I know many friends in the aviation circle, and they all think that the Taili flying car can pass the test and certification. "

  Li Zexiang nodded, Wang Tao then asked: "After passing the test and certification, the next step is to officially release the product. I heard that you plan to price a car at 278,000 US dollars?"

  Carl smiled: "Yes, the price is very cheap, lower than many manned aircraft.

   But the sales volume is definitely not comparable to DJI's drones, and their target customer group is much larger than ours. "

   "In addition to selling flying cars, have you considered building a fleet of your own to engage in the air taxi business in the future?"

  Li Zexiang glanced at Xia Jingxing, this is the concept proposed by President Xia, and it sounds a bit sci-fi to open an air taxi company in the future.

  Carl was really caught by this question, he thought for a long time before answering: "It sounds like a good idea, but how to implement it? Standing on the road or taking a taxi on the roof?"

  Li Zexiang replied: "Perhaps your product design can be more inclined to "flying", don't go on the road, otherwise such a long wing will affect the ground traffic operation."

  Karl shook his head again and again, "Then it will completely degenerate into a plane, not a flying car."

Wang Tao said: "ElectricVerticalTakeoffandLanding-eVTOL electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft is actually a good development direction, just like the vertical landing from the air in a sci-fi movie, it can bring earth-shaking changes to urban passenger transport, freight and other industries. .

  If it is only used as a personal vehicle, I am afraid that it can only attract a part of the rich and curious group to buy it for fun, it is difficult to expand sales and income, and there is not enough operating cash flow, so Taili Flying Car can only continue to choose financing..."

  Wang Tao's remarks made Carl ponder endlessly, but if someone else was pointing fingers at his "child", he would have sprayed it earlier.

   But Wang Tao is not an ordinary person. He is the founder and CEO of DJI drones, which are well-known all over the world.

  Xia Jingxing is very impressed with Wang Tao. After several years of experience, this technical otaku seems to have matured a lot. He is no longer obsessed with product development and begins to know how to look at problems from the perspective of business management.

   "Your proposal is very good, but the change of product design direction is not a trivial matter, I need to think about it carefully, and also need to listen to the opinions of other founders and shareholders."

   Karl's voice fell when he saw the flying car begin to descend from the sky, as if it was about to land. After he said sorry to everyone, he ran to command the landing.

   After Carl left, both Li Zexiang and Wang Tao looked at Xia Jingxing.

   "Mr. Xia, Taili Flying Car has received several rounds of financing before our investment. There are many internal shareholders, so it is difficult to reach a unified opinion."

  Xia Jingxing slightly nodded towards Li Zexiang, "It's their business whether to listen or not. I always feel that their flying cars are a bit tasteless, and it doesn't seem like the correct development direction in the future."

   A smile appeared on Li Zexiang's face, "Whether it's correct or not, it's all tried out step by step. This is a project that requires long-term investment and waiting for the results."

  Wang Tao glanced at the flying car that had landed and was slowly sliding on the ground, and said, "Mr. Xia, if they don't do what we want, can we do it ourselves?"

  Xia Jingxing glanced at Wang Tao in surprise, the latter grinned, "I think this business is related to our aerospace business group, and it should not be included in the industrial map of the automobile group.

   And isn't the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft talking about DJI drones?

   It’s just that the manned aircraft that you imagined, Mr. Xia, is larger than our current products, and its horsepower and battery life are stronger.

   We are now working on industrial and industrial drones that are larger than today’s consumer drones, and manned drones that are larger than industrial drones.

At the same time, the manned flying car is the intersection of the three major fields of automobile, aviation and new energy, and it also has the most important application scenarios of new materials, artificial intelligence and new generation information technology. For Fuxing Industrial Group, it is a perfect match for us. industry.

   In many fields such as mobile phones, computers, cars, etc., we are all followers. Maybe we can overtake once in the corner of the flying car and become the world leader. "

  For fear that Xia Jingxing would not allow DJI to make this flying car and manned aircraft, Wang Tao kept encouraging Xia Jingxing beside him.

  Xia Jingxing waved his hand, "It's alright, don't say it, I'll let you do it! When I return to China, I will ask Deng Yuanjun to allocate a separate sum for you as a special fund for the research and development of flying cars.

   But you should not delay the development of drones because of the research and development of flying cars.

   Drones belong to the present, while flying cars belong to the future. Don’t confuse the two. "

Wang Tao nodded hurriedly, and then he thought about it with joy on his face. Now their aerospace business group is getting bigger and bigger. Although the size is still not comparable to the subgroups of consumer electronics, smart home, and automobiles, he I think that what I do are high-quality products, such as flying cars, launch vehicles...

  Xia Jingxing has his own concerns. No matter how good the development of Taili flying car is, it is also an American company. How can it be convenient, safe and controllable from its own research and development and production.

   And what DJI intends to develop is an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, which is different from the Transition developed by Taili Speed, which is a rolling take-off and landing.

The two have something in common, both are developing in the direction of electrification and intelligence, but the Transition take-off conditions are relatively harsh, requiring a special airport or a closed-controlled runway. The flying car that DJI intends to develop is similar to a helicopter and can be used on the roof. Or take off and land on open ground.

   At this time, the Transition prototype (car) for the aerial performance had been parked on the runway, and Xia Jingxing and Ivanka came forward to watch it up close.

   At first glance, the prototype looks more like a plane than a car.

   It's just that it's not as slender and round as an ordinary plane, it's a bit like a frog, and it's a frog with wings.

When the wings are folded and folded, it finally looks like a car, but the wheels are extra special. They are not placed under the chassis, but use an open-wheel design, that is, the wheels extend out of the body, no Protected by the body shell, it is a bit like a formula car design.

   When the driver of the flying car got out of the car, Carl approached the car and introduced the product in detail to Xia Jingxing and others who were following behind him.

The   Transition uses a folding wing design, and the interior space allows up to two adults, including the driver.

  The length of the fuselage is 6.02 meters, the width is 2.3 meters, the height is 1.98 meters, and the wingspan is 8 meters wide.

  With the wings fully retracted, the Transition is about the same size as a normal domestic SUV, and it can enter any family garage perfectly.

In terms of power, it uses a hybrid engine, internal combustion engine + motor, the maximum horsepower of the internal combustion engine is 305 horsepower, and the maximum horsepower of the electric motor is 608 horsepower. It does not need to use aviation fuel, only need to add 97 gasoline, the fuel consumption per 100 kilometers is about 11.87 liters, and the maximum speed is 100 miles per hour. (161 kilometers) per hour, and the range can reach 400 miles (644 kilometers).

  Xia Jingxing put his head into the cockpit to have a look, and found that the space is indeed very small, similar to that of an ordinary car, and he did not know what it would feel like to drive.

   Carl saw that Xia Jingxing was very interested, and suggested, "Daren, do you want me to take you to the sky to experience it."

  Xia Jingxing coughed for a while, then smiled and waved his hands: "Forget it, I'll just have a look on the ground."

  Carl smiled, but did not continue to embarrass Xia Jingxing, and said, "Before you can officially drive this car, you still need to get a pilot's license.

There are a lot of people in the United States with various types of pilot licenses, about 600,000. After deducting civil aviation pilots, there are about 200,000 people with various types of flying licenses such as fixed-wing aircraft, rotorcraft, and gliders, and the number of private jets also exceeds 200,000. .

  If we can convert all these people into our customers, the commercialization of Taili flying car will enter a new stage. "

  Xia Jingxing smiled, he didn't want to hit Carl, but to be honest, how many rich people dare to ride this kind of flying car?

  The rich are afraid of death. If the plane falls, all the imperial plans and dominance will be in vain.

  To promote flying cars, there is a long way to go, and the time may be calculated in ten years.

   "Carl, I think your main focus is on cultivating the market and educating users."

  Xia Jingxing bowed and got into the cockpit. After looking around for a few times, he continued: "For example, invite some interested volunteers to test drive the flying car, and then post the relevant video on the tubing.

   Oh, by the way, you also need to register an official Facebook and Twitter account, and then update and introduce Tai Li Speed ​​from time to time.

   Let the public be familiar with this thing. After the strangeness is gone, the sense of insecurity will also be reduced.

   This is not an easy task, it requires perseverance and use of technology upgrades and time to build a brand little by little. "

  Karl pondered for a moment, then said, "Okay! But I also have an unkind request."

"what?"

   "I want you to be the first owner of Tai Li Speed."

  Xia Jingxing nodded slightly and asked, "Do you need me to fly it up to the sky, and then shoot a video?"

  Karl nodded lightly, and then asked expectantly, "Can you?"

  Xia Jingxing didn't say a word. He was thinking about this issue seriously. If even his own boss dared not take this car, would customers believe it? Will you be willing to buy it?

  DJI’s future flying car products will also face such trust issues.

  Who will be the first to eat crabs? Who is the boss of the various flying car companies? You must speak for your own company!

"No problem, I agreed... By the way, I would like to ask one more question, is there a parachute or ejection seat in the car? If not, you can consider installing one to give customers more care, and the repurchase rate will be higher. "

   (end of this chapter)