sinovels Chapter 170 The Apple Trip
Chapter 170 The Apple Trip
Chapter 170 The Apple Trip
After spending a few days in Houston, Ernst prepared to leave on May 24.
In the past few days, Peter Thiel made a special trip to Houston to have thorough discussions with Enron.
After countless refinements, a comprehensive plan was finally finalized.
On the way to the airport, the scenery outside the car window rushed past, but Peter Thiel kept his brow furrowed, his doubts like an unsolvable fog.
He turned his head to look at Ernst beside him, his tone tinged with confusion, "Why did you agree to let Enron officially list PayPal before August 1st?"
PayPa's software development is indeed basically complete. The main code architecture has been built, and only the final filling and improvement are left. It will soon enter the testing phase.
But in Peter Thiel's view, two months was far too short.
Unlike other software, PayPa can be deployed and patched as it is being used. It must undergo flawless testing before it can be released because it involves financial assets.
Software testing is an extremely tedious process. Even the smallest flaw can cause huge problems, and solving these problems often requires a lot of time and effort, and is by no means something that can be done overnight.
Peter Thiel's excitement about PayPa being able to board the giant ship of Enron was indescribable.
However, he felt that An Ran's strict time limit was a bit too hasty.
Ernst looked at the man beside him who would later become a prominent figure in the business world, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.
At this moment, Peter Thiel had not yet fully transitioned into his new role, still carrying the caution and limitations of a fledgling entrepreneur, and was unable to view the matter from a more macro perspective.
"Money isn't everything, but there are many things in this world that money can buy, like time."
Ernst’s voice came out calmly, as if he were stating a truth that had already been proven.
"If there's not enough time, then we'll have to use money to make up for it. Anran is a very wealthy guy," he added, his tone revealing a confident, strategic mind.
Peter Thiel's eyes widened in shock. He never expected Ernst to set his sights on Enron. Although PayPa| had partnered with Enron, it was not ultimately a subsidiary of Enron. But since Enron was so eager to use PayPa|'s services, allocating some funds to accelerate the research and development process was not unreasonable, was it?
Before Peter Thiel could fully process Ernst's plan, even more shocking information was yet to come.
"Tell Anran in a few days that it's impossible for PayPa to launch in August. We don't have enough programmers to complete the extensive testing."
Ernst had an expression on his face that suggested he had everything under control. "If we want to launch in August, we need to add more programmers and increase the workload, but PayPal doesn't have the money."
He paused briefly, tapping his knee lightly with his fingers, as if he were making precise calculations.
After a moment, he felt that he shouldn't take too much advantage of the situation. "Let's start with thirty million US dollars."
Peter Thiel's mouth was slightly open, and he couldn't speak for a long time, as if his brain had suddenly crashed.
Thirty million US dollars! That's more than enough to develop three more PayPas.
"Isn't that asking for too much?"
Ernst, however, did not think so at all. "You have to understand, Enron is a big company, and big companies have to pay big prices."
Peter Thiel swallowed hard, then asked hesitantly, "Will Enron pay?"
In his view, would Enron be a fool to throw away $30 million for someone else's project? This was completely beyond his conventional understanding of business logic.
Ernst, however, looked confident, his eyes gleaming with an all-knowing light. "Enron will. Not to mention thirty million dollars, Enron will even pull out three hundred million dollars."
"What are thirty to fifty million US dollars to Enron? Once they become an energy market maker, the returns will be ten or even a hundred times greater."
He suddenly laughed. "We don't even need to wait until later. Just by announcing this news, Enron's stock price will rise by three billion dollars."
As soon as the relevant news is released, Enron's stock price will inevitably surge.
It's important to understand that $3 billion is less than 4% of Enron's current market capitalization. For Enron, such an increase is a drop in the ocean compared to the $30 million cost.
Peter Thiel pondered Ernst's words carefully and found them to make sense. A sense of greed began to creep within him, and he tentatively asked, "Should we ask for more funds?"
Ernst smiled at the other person, his eyes showing a hint of approval, as if to say, "This young man is teachable."
"Do you know what it means to cut flesh with a dull knife? If you're too full, you'll lose. You have to do it little by little. That way, others will be more likely to accept it. So what I'm saying is that I need thirty million US dollars first."
Peter Thiel did not utter another word until he boarded Ernst's private plane.
The cabin was so quiet that the only sound was the roar of the plane's engines. He leaned back in his seat, Ernst's words and the business logic that overturned his understanding of the world echoing in his mind.
He felt his worldview being shattered little by little, realizing that this was how capitalists operated.
Allies exist only because they have value to each other, not because people with value will necessarily become allies. Everything revolves around interests.
The plane flew smoothly all the way and eventually landed in San Jose, California.
It wasn't that Ernst was kind enough to use his private plane to bring Peter Thiel back; rather, there was no airport at his destination, and San Jose Airport was the closest one.
Peter Thiel's car was already parked in the airport parking lot. After a brief farewell, the two went their separate ways.
After parting ways at the airport, Ernst drove south to Cupertino.
Fortunately, the distance between the two places is not far, only a dozen kilometers, and it takes about twenty minutes to arrive if there are no obstacles.
As Ernst's car slowly drove into Apple's headquarters campus, a familiar figure appeared at the entrance—Steve Jobs.
"Hey, my old friend." Jobs approached with a warm smile.
Ernst was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected Jobs to come out and greet him personally.
He thought to himself, "It seems Apple really values my arrival, which also indirectly confirms Apple's current predicament."
It seems that Apple is truly his love, as even the usually arrogant man has made changes.
However, Ernst really wanted to say, I still prefer your rebellious side, can't you just go back to your old ways?
It wasn't that he had a crush on MILFs, but the other person's sycophantic behavior really gave him goosebumps. That smile was full of fawning, completely different from the Steve Jobs he remembered.
It can only be said that his investment in Jobs back then is finally starting to pay off.
Sure enough, when Apple was facing a shortage of funds, Steve Jobs immediately approached him.
"You really know how to play the high and mighty, but isn't the price too high?" Ernst asked with a hint of curiosity as he and Jobs hugged and walked side by side into the park.
The "pretending to be high-minded" that Ernst mentioned was specifically targeting Jobs' NEXT company.
NEXT was a company Ernst had always wanted to acquire, but Jobs never gave up.
Ernst initially thought he had victory in the bag, given NEXT's current difficulties; however, Jobs remained steadfast in his belief in NEXT.
This could be of great help to Apple.
Indeed, as Steve Jobs said, the NEXT system demonstrated remarkable superiority. It could support four videos playing simultaneously on the screen and easily handle operations such as creating multimedia files.
These functions may be insignificant even if a second-hand computer worth two thousand yuan can perform them ten years from now.
However, in that era of relatively backward technology, the system's power was fully demonstrated.
With the same hardware configuration, Microsoft's system can barely achieve a similar level, but in terms of smoothness, it is absolutely no match for the NEXT system.
Apple had no choice but to reluctantly agree to Steve Jobs's conditions and acquire NEXT in order to bring him back to take charge.
However, problems soon followed. Steve Jobs priced NEXT at $400 million, but after evaluation, Apple believed that the company was not worth that price at all, and the two sides reached a stalemate.
After numerous difficult negotiations and bargaining sessions, a preliminary consensus was finally reached, and NEXT's valuation was set at $3.5 million.
Although the price was set, new problems arose.
Apple hopes to acquire Steve Jobs' shares in NEXT through a stock buyout, which would minimize cash outlays and alleviate the company's financial pressure.
But Steve Jobs insisted on a cash acquisition, which plunged Apple, which was already facing financial difficulties, into an even greater predicament.
Steve Jobs' shares in NEXT, valued at $3.5 million, are worth approximately $1.57 million.
For Apple right now, this amount of cash is undoubtedly a huge sum, and the company simply cannot come up with it.
In the end, Apple made a huge concession, offering $1.2 million in cash plus 3700 million Apple stock to acquire the company, but even so, Steve Jobs still refused.
reason?
Ernst had already asked this question when Jobs called him, and his answer now was exactly the same as what he had said on the phone: "You know, I can't own Apple stock, otherwise I can't stand on the moral high ground."
He wanted to project a positive image to everyone, to convince them that his return to Apple was not due to his poor performance elsewhere, nor was it for Apple stock.
Although Apple's cash flow is currently extremely tight, only enough to support the company's normal operations for three months, it is still much better than NEXT's situation.
If he held Apple stock, it would give the impression that he was there to take advantage of Apple, which contradicts the savior image he wants to cultivate.
He wanted to stand on the moral high ground and make it clear to everyone that he returned to Apple purely to save the company to which he had poured countless efforts.
Regardless of how Apple treated him in the past, he always stepped forward when the company faced difficulties.
That's why Ernst said he was being hypocritical and that he would pay a heavy price for it.
Of course, this is undoubtedly great news for Ernst, otherwise he wouldn't have made this trip to Apple today.
His goal is very clear: not only to successfully acquire NEXT, but also to take the opportunity to invest in Apple, taking the first step towards controlling Apple.
He had been planning this game for a long time, and now the crucial moment to make his move had finally arrived.
Stepping into Apple's campus, the surrounding environment is clean and modern, with lush greenery, showcasing the former glory of this tech giant.
Upon entering the conference room, Ernst knew that the real game was about to begin.
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