ryethenovel Chapter 298: How Much Money Is Still Needed?
Chapter 298: How Much Money Is Still Needed?
Upon seeing Zhang Gaolei, he immediately went up to him: "Hey! Zhang! You're finally back. If you ask me, you shouldn't have gone back. Look, we've run into trouble as soon as you left."
"Didn't they say there was progress?"
"Let's get in the car first! Trevor is waiting for you. I'll tell you all about it on the way."
"Zhang, we're in some trouble right now. Trevor and I have tried many times and come up with many solutions, but we can't get around some of the patents. Those damn sons of bitches have set up so many patent barriers. They're just rotten shit."
Actually, the three of them have done this quite a lot. They have also registered patents for their technology and set up patent barriers. Many people do this now. Big companies with more money register even more. A whole bunch of random things, you never know what you might stumble upon.
Therefore, when developing their own software, they often need to check whether a certain technology has already been registered by someone else.
Zhang Gaolei rubbed his temples and listened helplessly to his roommate's complaints. This American used the same few words over and over again when he swore; he was tired of hearing them.
Zhang Gaolei knew about what Darwin was talking about. Since hanging out with the two of them, Zhang Gaolei also learned what technology patents were. In Europe and America, patents are protected, and unauthorized infringement of patents will result in compensation. Therefore, ordinary people and small companies will not and dare not infringe on other people's patents at will, as this will cause trouble and may even lead to bankruptcy.
Of course, this doesn't mean that there are no patent infringements in Europe and America; on the contrary, such cases are quite common.
Some large companies are not afraid of losing money. As long as the profits are huge, they dare to blatantly infringe on patents. Moreover, these large companies have professional legal teams to fight lawsuits against you. The lawsuits can last for many years. Ordinary people and small companies simply cannot afford to drag on and fight lawsuits, because legal fees in the United States are very expensive.
Of course, there are also cases where large companies sue each other for patent infringement, but this may not be as it appears on the surface. Perhaps these large companies are all controlled by a conglomerate, and this is a staged drama to avoid being sued under antitrust laws.
However, a small research team like Zhang Gaolei, Darwin, and Trevor would never dare to infringe on other people's patents at will. If it were just for their own entertainment and not for commercial use, that would be fine. But what these three were making was definitely for commercial use, which required the use of other people's patents. They could only do so by buying these patents or the right to use them.
However, these patents are not just one or two, but many. As a result, they will have to pay a lot of money. Of course, these patents are not outrageously expensive yet. After all, Internet technology has only been around for a little over two years, and some technologies are still hidden gems. Compared to the future, they are only worth a pittance now.
However, even a bargain like this requires money, especially for a small team like this one, which is entirely supported by Zhang Gaolei's funding. They have tried to attract investment from other people, but unfortunately, no one is optimistic about their project. Perhaps they just haven't met a discerning investor.
Darwin continued, "Trevor and I tested it, and the browser works great, but there are still quite a few flaws. You know we don't have the money to hire people to improve the tool, so we're sending you back to solve the money problem. Buying patents costs money, hiring people costs money, Zhang! We fucking need money!"
At one point, Darwin even slapped the steering wheel hard.
Initially, Zhang Gaolei invested $80,000, holding a 334% stake, while Darwin and Trevor contributed their technology, each holding a 333% stake. Now that the $80,000 has long been spent, the two are eager to bring Zhang Gaolei back to discuss resolving the money issue.
"Darwin, please be kinder to your steering wheel, I don't want to end up in the hospital, okay?"
"Oh! I'm sorry, Zhang, I got a little excited!"
"How much money do we still need?"
"Trevor and I did the math, and we'll need $360,000 to buy patents and hire people."
Zhang Gaolei was startled: "How much?"
"Three hundred and sixty thousand US dollars, am I not being clear enough?"
To be honest, Zhang Gaolei could come up with $360,000, but if he did, his future tuition would be uncertain. That's the downside of American universities—the tuition is ridiculously expensive.
Moreover, if the project fails to commercialize, the money invested will be wasted without a trace, so Zhang Gaolei dared not make that decision.
Then he remembered what Huang Xiaochuan had told him. Yes! The big dog is a ready-made investor, isn't he? He has money and is willing to invest. You can't find such a good thing even with a lantern. This is what they call "searching high and low without finding it, but getting it just by going back to China".
Thinking of this, Zhang Gaolei said, "Darwin, I told my classmate about this when I went back to China, and he was very interested and willing to invest in us."
"Really? But do your classmates have that much money? And we need US dollars, not the kind of currency your country uses." Darwin was first surprised, then doubtful.
"Don't worry! I know he has the ability."
"Really?" Darwin stared wide-eyed at Zhang Gaolei.
Startled, Zhang Gaolei pointed ahead and shouted, "There's a car! Damn it!" He said this in Chinese, which really frightened him, causing him to blurt out his native tongue.
Darwin turned his head and saw that their car was about to bump into the back of a truck. He quickly stepped on the brakes and swerved sharply to the right to avoid it.
Still shaken, Zhang Gaolei decided not to say another word until they reached Palo Alto, letting the guy drive carefully, or he'd be in trouble sooner or later.
When they arrived at the garage the three of them had rented, Darwin got out of the car and started shouting.
"Trevor, I have good news for you. Zhang has found an investor."
A disheveled, bearded, brown-haired white man ran out of the garage. This man was Trevor Kent, a graduate student in computer science at Stanford University. Darwin Water was also a graduate student in computer science at Stanford.
It was purely coincidental that Zhang Gaolei became Darwin's roommate. Because Zhang Gaolei was willing to pay for a more comfortable place to live, the school arranged for him to live in the graduate student dormitory. Anyway, they only shared the living room and kitchen, and each had their own room, so they basically did not disturb each other.
While the two were talking at the garage entrance, Zhang Gaolei went inside and took a look. A foul stench almost knocked him out on the spot.
Damn it! This place is like a garbage dump. I bet no one has cleaned it since I came back to China. Those two bastards are both so lazy!
Zhang Gaolei had no choice but to go back outside the garage; he couldn't stand being inside for even a minute longer.
Trevor's eyes lit up when he saw Zhang Gaolei, as if he had seen a savior.
He stepped forward, grabbed Zhang Gaolei's arms with both hands, and asked, "Zhang, is what Darwin said true?"
Damn! The smell on this guy was so strong that Zhang Gaolei couldn't even open his eyes.
"Oh my god! Trevor, how long has it been since you took a shower? You stink more than a pig in a pigsty!" Zhang Gaolei quickly broke free from Trevor's hands and moved far away from him.
Trevor sniffed himself, puzzled. "Nothing? Zhang? Are all Asians' noses that sensitive?"
Darwin shrugged. "I think that's how it is. When I first met Zhang, he disliked me because he thought I had body odor. Actually, girls like this smell; it's a masculine smell. Maybe Zhang has homophobic tendencies?"
Zhang Gaolei didn't want to discuss this issue with them. Instead, he stood two steps away and said to the two of them, "The investment is progressing well. The question now is how many shares the three of us are willing to give up?"
The three of them stood outside the garage and started talking about investments.
"Did Darwin tell you how much money we need now, Zhang?"
"He told me, but why so much?" Zhang Gaolei still had some doubts.
"That's because we need to purchase more than twenty patents, and we need a lot of manpower, space, and computers for testing over the next two months. I've already budgeted down to the single digit."
Darwin nodded to Zhang Gaolei, indicating that Trevor was telling the truth.