Chapter 516: Like Cooking a Delicious Dish

Xiao Jianguang perked up, turned around immediately, and walked quickly forward: "Yes, I am Xiao Jianguang."

"Please move over, Mr. Xiao. The experts on the bid evaluation committee have some questions that need your on-site answers." The staff member spoke in a businesslike tone.

"Okay, no problem." Xiao Jianguang took a deep breath and followed the staff into the room where the winner would be decided.

The atmosphere in the bidding room was solemn and dignified. Seven or eight judges sat at the oval conference table, all with serious expressions.

Xiao Jianguang quickly glanced at the four corners of the room and clearly saw the surveillance cameras with flashing red dots.

It is well known that the bidding process for this major livelihood project that affects the travel of hundreds of millions of citizens is extremely rigorous and all actions are under surveillance.

A middle-aged man sitting in the middle pointed to the empty chair opposite him and said politely:

"Mr. Xiao, please take a seat. I am He Anbang, Deputy General Manager of China Railway Corporation, and the head of this bid evaluation committee."

Xiao Jianguang took a seat and politely responded, "Hello, Mr. He, and hello, all the experts."

He Anbang picked up the technical plan belonging to Tenda Technology, which was obviously much thicker than that of other companies, and patted it gently.

He glanced at the quotation document from Alibaba Group next to it, which was marked with an astonishingly low price, and then looked up at Xiao Jianguang with an increasingly serious expression.

"Mr. Xiao, the jury conducted a very detailed review of the technical proposal submitted by your company and generally highly approved of it."

After a brief pause, he turned to the core part of the solution and said, "The distributed cloud computing architecture and the original dynamic resource scheduling algorithm are really eye-catching.

It can be said that in terms of technological foresight and targeted solutions, Tenda Technology has demonstrated world-class standards and is far ahead.”

"Thank you very much for the affirmation from Mr. He and all the experts." Xiao Jianguang felt relieved, but he knew that the key point must be in the following part, so he said a polite word and said no more, waiting for the next part.

Sure enough, He Anbang changed the subject, placed the two documents side by side, tapped the quotation number with his finger, and his voice deepened:

"The technology is good, and the solution is also good. But, Mr. Xiao, Tengda's offer is too high! It's almost three times what Alibaba Group offered!"

This is a national livelihood project. We must be responsible to the people for every budget expenditure, pay attention to cost-effectiveness, and ensure that it can withstand audits and historical tests.

So, I would like to ask Mr. Xiao, based on this quotation, does your company still have some room for profit concessions?

Could you please ask your company's decision-makers if you can consider the social benefits of national projects and then lower the price?"

Pressure suddenly hit him. Xiao Jianguang felt the eyes of all the judges around him focused on him. He remained expressionless and nodded slightly.

"Mr. He, your question is very pertinent. I fully understand the considerations of the state and the railway group regarding project costs.

However, this involves a significant price adjustment, which is beyond my authority. I need to consult my legal representative, Chairman Song Ci, immediately before I can give you a definitive answer."

He Anbang expressed his understanding of this, saying that for such a large project, it is indeed impossible for the on-site bidding representatives to have the final pricing power.

He raised his hand and gestured, "Yes, that's as it should be. Please, Mr. Xiao, there's a small meeting room next door that's empty. You can go there to make a phone call and ask for instructions. We'll wait here."

Xiao Jianguang stood up, stepped into the quiet small meeting room next to him, and gently closed the door with his backhand, isolating himself from the outside world.

He walked quickly to the window, took a few deep breaths, and then took out his cell phone, which had been on silent mode, from his suit pocket.

Fortunately, Chairman Song Ci had no important meetings or foreign affairs activities today, so the phone was connected after only two rings.

A concerned voice came from the other end of the phone: "Engineer Xiao, you're calling at this time. Is there a result for the bidding?"

Xiao Jianguang did not dare to delay and quickly reported the situation on the scene in the most concise and clear language possible, especially He Anbang's original words and requirements.

Finally, he added, "Mr. Song, the situation is more serious than expected. Alibaba's offer is unreasonably low."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, and then Song Ci's voice rang out again, with a calm and scrutinizing tone: "I remember the company's final offer was 300 million. So, according to you, Ali only offered 100 million?"

"Yes, Mr. Song," Xiao Jianguang said confidently, with the conviction that only a technician can muster. "Based on our previous precise calculations, Alibaba's offer will definitely result in a significant loss.

The fixed costs such as hardware and infrastructure maintenance, and commercial software system licensing fees alone would definitely exceed 100 million yuan.

Not to mention the huge bandwidth network costs, technical team manpower costs and daily operating expenses.

The company's offer of 300 million is based on high-specification technical configuration and an optimized operating model, with only an 8% gross profit margin reserved. It can be said to be a reasonable price."

Song Ci responded without hesitation in the receiver, and decisively ordered: "Mr. Xiao, the price is negotiable. I now officially authorize you, and the final on-site quotation will be determined by you according to the circumstances!"

I have only one request: overcome all difficulties and spare no expense to win the 12306 project!

This is not just a project; it's also about the company's future strategic layout, and its significance goes far beyond immediate profits. Do you understand?"

The chairman's decisive order was like a reassurance, instantly calming all the anxiety and uncertainty in Xiao Jianguang's heart.

He immediately responded in a deep voice: "I understand! Mr. Song, don't worry, I know what to do!"

After hanging up the phone, all of Xiao Jianguang's previous worries and anxieties disappeared.

Since the chairman has clearly defined the goal and does not care about temporary gains and losses, as long as the results are achieved, there will be no obstacles to winning this project.

What we need to consider now is how to minimize the company's losses while meeting the judges' requirements and demonstrating Tengda's sincerity.

He adjusted his expression, regaining the image of a calm and confident technical officer, then opened the door of the conference room and strode towards the bid evaluation room.

At the same time, Song Ci slowly moved the phone away from her ear. Zhang Yong, who was sitting opposite her, saw this and put down his teacup. "Any results from the Railway Group's bid?"

Song Ci shook her head slightly. "The results haven't come out yet. We've encountered a small uncertainty. Ali quoted a ridiculously low price, and the judging panel asked us to conduct a second round of bidding."

After a moment of silence, he said calmly, "Based on the current situation, this project may cost us over 100 million in losses."

Zhang Yong's expression eased slightly upon hearing this, and he offered a soothing reassurance, "A loss of one or two hundred million is something we can afford given the size of our group. Just think of it as supporting national infrastructure development and giving back to society."

After hearing this, Song Ci couldn't help but chuckle, and there was a hint of ridicule in his laughter, "How could I be reluctant to lose this little bit? Money can be earned again after it's spent."

I just didn't expect that a 'super-large spender' like the National Railway would be so 'tight-fisted' with its budget and cry poor to us. It seems every family has its own problems.

As soon as he finished speaking, he put away his smile and said firmly, "Lao Zhang, the strategic value of the 12306 project far exceeds the book profit and loss. Even if it's given away for free, we must get it at all costs!"

A look of surprise flashed across Zhang Yong's face. He didn't expect the chairman to attach so much importance to it, even to the point of "regardless of cost".

After a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Since you're so determined to win, why don't you just offer a more competitive price? What if your initial bid is too high? Will that mess things up?"

Song Ci was not surprised by Zhang Yong's doubts and patiently explained: "When dealing with large-scale national projects, we cannot simply use ordinary commercial competition thinking.

This is not a simple game where whoever offers the lowest price wins.

The evaluation criteria are comprehensive, taking into account technical solutions, company strength, and other factors. There will definitely be a second round of bids, or even a third round of negotiations.”

Sitting up straight, his eyes gleaming, he said, "If we quote a loss-making price from the outset when we have an absolute technological advantage, it will easily lead to vicious competition."

"Secondly, and more importantly!" Song Ci said in a steady and powerful voice, "There are so many large-scale national projects. If the railway project loses a bit today, what about the power system project tomorrow? And what about the water supply and transportation projects the day after tomorrow?

When it comes to business, national projects cannot simply ignore commercial logic and profitability. Otherwise, how will the group's R&D investment and the future of its workforce be supported?"

"That's right. I didn't think it through."

Song Ci's analysis made Zhang Yong certain that there must be extremely important strategic considerations behind his insistence on taking over 12306.

He asked tentatively, "Mr. Song, what is the 'added value' of this project?"

"Good question!" Song Ci's eyes gleamed with passion, and he uttered two words in a resounding voice: "Data!"

“National Railway data, especially the data generated by the 12306 system, is by no means comparable to ordinary commercial data.

It is the most real and dynamic social operation data covering the whole country, generated under extreme pressure!

For future research on cloud computing and artificial intelligence, it is an inexhaustible 'data gold mine'!"

Song Ci spoke excitedly, "Old Zhang, think about it, the data from 12306 can give the cloud computing system such valuable training.

That's the real "fire refining true gold"! Ticket purchasing is so complicated, including inquiry, seat reservation, payment, ticket change and refund, route selection...

The system will be forced to evolve to develop top-level capabilities for handling long-term, ultra-high loads and intelligent dynamic resource scheduling!

Zhang Yong seemed to be thinking about something. Although he was not directly responsible for technology, as the CEO of the group, he had a very deep understanding of the core business.

It is conceivable that after being tested in world-class scenarios like 12306, Tenda Cloud's stability, elasticity, and efficiency will reach astonishing heights.

This will undoubtedly be the most solid technological barrier when competing with Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure in the global market in the future.

Song Ci became more and more excited as he spoke, his words filled with heart-stirring longing: "More importantly, this data is excellent nutrient for training ultra-large-scale social simulation AI.

It includes multiple dimensions such as time, departure place, destination, and personnel composition, and can clearly outline the migration map of hundreds of millions of people during specific periods such as the Spring Festival and National Day.

Based on this, we can conduct in-depth research on labor mobility, regional economic correlation, and tourism development!

This is not just commercial value, but also strategic value that can empower national macroeconomic decision-making!"

"So that's it!" After Song Ci's insightful guidance, Zhang Yong completely understood the unparalleled importance of national railway data.

The technologies and capabilities to handle extremely complex scenarios like 12306 will be reused in countless fields such as logistics scheduling, power grid distribution, and smart transportation in the future, which will be a dimensionality reduction attack.

Song Ci paused for a moment and sighed, "The core competitiveness of future top technology companies will be reflected in the integration and control of the three major elements of data, algorithms, and computing power.

For cloud computing and artificial intelligence research, the three are closely linked and none of them can be missing."

Noticing that Zhang Yong was still somewhat confused about the essence of the ternary relationship technology, he pondered for a moment and found a vivid metaphor:

"Let me give you an analogy. Building an AI system is like cooking a gourmet meal."

Then he held up three fingers and said, "Data is the ingredients. The freshness and richness of the ingredients determine the potential and ceiling of the dish.

Algorithms are recipes and cooking methods that determine how to turn ingredients into delicious dishes.

Computing power is like the kitchen stove, spatula, chef’s skills and firepower. Without sufficient firepower and the right tools, even the best ingredients and recipes are just castles in the air.”

Zhang Yong's eyes lit up, and he applied it to other situations, smoothly continuing the conversation: "I understand! Data is the basic means of production and the source of vitality.

Algorithms are the soul and method for extracting patterns from data and making intelligent decisions; computing power is the engine and energy foundation that supports the realization of all this.

Excellent algorithms can utilize data more efficiently and accurately, while powerful computing power determines how quickly and effectively massive amounts of data can be processed and complex algorithms can be run."

"That's a very good summary!" Song Ci gave a thumbs-up in appreciation. "Simply put, the relationship between the three is this: computing power determines 'how fast it can compute'!

Algorithms determine how well something can be calculated, while data determines what can be calculated.

At this time, Song Ci stood up and walked to the window. Outside the window, the night had completely enveloped the city, and his pensive face was clearly reflected on the glass.

He was silent for a long time, as if he was making some important decision, and then he spoke slowly. His voice was not loud, but it was very weighty.

"In the second half of the year, I plan to start the 'Hunyuan' project."

Zhang Yong's heart was shaken upon hearing this. The word "Hunyuan" conveyed a sense of grandeur, encompassing everything and the beginning of chaos. This was definitely not an ordinary project.

Subconsciously sitting up straight, he asked cautiously, "'Hunyuan' project? Does it require the allocation of funds and resources in advance?"

A huge pressure suddenly surged in my heart. The group is currently investing huge sums of money in the research and development of its own mobile phone operating system, which is itself a money-eating beast.

The food delivery and ride-hailing businesses were about to embark on a brutal money-burning war. As CEO, I was racking my brains every day trying to balance the budget and find new growth points.

Song Ci caught a glimpse of Zhang Yong's instantly furrowed brows, and understood the pressure on his shoulders. He then waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be nervous.

"Relax, you don't need to sell everything you have just yet. The 'Hunyuan' project is still in the conceptual and preliminary demonstration stages.

At present, after WeChat, the group’s next clear strategic focus is to enter the short video field.

As for 'Hunyuan', you should first know about this matter and put it on the top secret agenda. You only need to make proper arrangements in the early stages, and the specific resource investment will be discussed later."

Zhang Yong finally breathed a sigh of relief and nodded solemnly, "I understand! I'll keep a close eye on this and make the necessary preparations."

(Please give me a monthly ticket! Thanks (ω))

(End of this chapter)