After hearing Shirakawa Kaede shout "I have money", not only Matsumura Masayoshi, but even Kobayashi Asuka were stunned.
They said they were eager to recruit talented people, but in the end they still had to use money to pave the way.
Matsumura Masayoshi turned around and looked Shirakawa Kaede up and down, "Did that Kikuchi guy send you to deliver the money?"
"Uh" Shirakawa Feng was embarrassed by the professor's train of thought. Why did he have to involve Professor Kikuchi in everything? How much resentment was there between these two people?
"Professor Matsumura, why don't we go inside and talk?" Shirakawa Feng suggested without losing any time.
Matsumura Masayoshi, who was in a hurry to do the experiment, didn't want to waste time on Shirakawa Kaede.
However, considering the other party's financial ability, he finally nodded and said, "Come in first." After saying that, he turned around and entered the laboratory.
Baichuan Feng was delighted, thinking that if they could sit down and talk, then there would be a way.
Without delay, he and Asuka Kobayashi entered the laboratory one after another.
Masayoshi Matsumura's laboratory is much more shabby than Professor Kikuchi's territory, and the area alone is incomparable.
When Shirakawa Feng entered, the first thing that caught his eye was a variety of unknown instruments that filled most of the space in the laboratory.
Because some of them are so huge, the lights on the ceiling are blocked, making it look a little dim inside.
Professor Kikuchi's place is not only spacious and bright, but most of the instruments are also installed in different rooms according to their categories.
Looking from the corridor outside to the room by room, it is really very classy.
Not to mention that he has his own separate office. As for Masaaki Matsumura, he also has an office.
Look, this is the small compartment in front of you.
The white plastic board smells cheap and has become a little dark due to its age.
The transparent glass on the upper part had been worn so hard that it was almost impossible to see Yi Yizai who was working outside.
It’s not that Tokyo Institute of Technology doesn’t have the money to renovate this place, it’s just that the annual funding is invested by Masayoshi Matsumura in experiments.
As for the laboratory, as long as the equipment and instruments are usable, it doesn't matter if the other things are just so-so.
After saying hello to Masu Ichiya outside, Shirakawa Kaede and Kobayashi Asuka also entered the small cubicle, which was Professor Matsumura's office.
"Tell me, why did that Kikuchi guy ask you to come here? It's definitely not out of kindness like giving you money."
After sitting down, Masayoshi Matsumura started asking questions directly. These technical experts are all efficiency maniacs. They always get straight to the point and never drag their feet.
"Although it may be a bit rude to say this, it may be able to solve Professor Matsumura's urgent problem."
As he spoke, Shirakawa Kaede had already taken out the CD that he had shown Professor Kikuchi last time from his bag.
However, this time there is not only the physical object, but also an additional technical document.
Shirakawa Electric has signed a patent mutual licensing agreement with Sony. Although the CD technology has not yet been officially released, it has been basically completed.
In order to develop the corresponding playback equipment for this technology as soon as possible, Shirakawa Electric also obtained more specific technical parameters.
Matsumura Masaki didn't look at the CD beside him, but immediately picked up the technical information and read it carefully. He wanted to see how it related to his urgent need.
"Scanning speed: 1.2–1.4 m/s…
Track pitch: 1.65 microns...
Read and write speed: 1X = 150 KiB/s...
Capacity: 700MB
…
16-bit PCM encoding, sampling rate 44.1kHz..."
After reading the technical information in his hand, Masayoshi Matsumura was shocked by the information above.
"Interesting, really interesting." The huge capacity of 700M alone surprised Matsumura Masayoshi.
You should know that among the current computer hard drives for ordinary users, the one with the largest capacity is the 5.25-inch hard drive that Seagate just unveiled at its press conference this year.
The capacity is 5M, and the price is $1500! This is just the product of the press conference, and the real thing has not been seen yet.
As for professional hard drives with larger capacity, they do exist.
IBM's professional hard drive has a capacity of just 1GB, is as big as a refrigerator, and weighs 250kg.
It was priced at $40,000, roughly the price of a mid-range Ferrari at the time.
Smaller commercial hard drives are available in the laboratory of Tokyo Institute of Technology.
Look, that rice cooker-like thing next to the PC has a capacity of 64MB.
Masayoshi Matsumura remembers that when he was purchasing, the quote was about five thousand US dollars.
So you can imagine how surprised Masayoshi Matsumura was when a small CD was placed in front of him, but its capacity was 700MB.
"Unfortunately, this should be an audio format and cannot be used to store data directly."
Masayoshi Matsumura took another look at the information in his hand and became more familiar with the parameters above.
"Professor Matsumura is right. This format is named CD-DA and is currently only developed for the audio field."
CDs are also divided into multiple formats. Although the ones for listening to music and storing data look the same, they are not in the same format.
"I'm good at electronic semiconductors, so I guess Kikuchi didn't recommend you to me just for this CD itself."
Masayoshi Matsumura is very clear about the scope of his academic abilities. He has some knowledge of digital information, but this is not his strong point.
"Professor Matsumura, I came to visit you today because Shirakawa wants to develop his decoding equipment.
The storage principle must be clear to the professor. The conversion of digital information 0 and 1 is achieved by reflecting different wavelengths through the pits on the surface of the CD.
Now we need to decode and convert these 0s and 1s, and finally restore them into analog signals of sound waves, and then output the sound through amplifiers or headphones. "
This is the general working principle of a CD player. The laser head emits light onto the disc surface. The light will reflect for different lengths of time when it hits the pits and the flat surface, which represents 0 and 1.
So how to finally restore these 0s and 1s into analog signals, that is, the original signals of sound waves, is the core part of the technology.
"Convert digital signal into analog signal..." Matsumura Masayoshi probably knew what Shirakawa Kaede wanted to do.
"So, what Shirakawa wants to make is a DAC decoding chip that processes signal conversion!"
Masayoshi Matsumura looked at Shirakawa Kaede with surprise. The young guy recommended by Kikuchi seemed to have great ambitions.
"That's right! It's a chip!" Baichuan Feng nodded seriously. To be precise it is a designed decoding chip.
The two most technologically advanced parts of a CD player are the laser head and the DAC decoding chip.
Half of the final sound quality of a CD player depends on the performance of the DAC chip.
The DAC chip restores the sound waveform. The closer it is to the original waveform when it was recorded, the better the sound quality will naturally be.
Because there is loss in the restoration process, the waveform can only be infinitely close but cannot be restored 100%.
Therefore, the DAC chip is the key to whether the sound waves are restored realistically.
This level of technical difficulty is far beyond what Shirakawa Electric can currently solve, and it requires the help of the most advanced technical experts to accomplish it.
"Shirakawa-san, do you know how much it costs to develop a brand new chip?"
Matsumura Masaaki looked at Shirakawa Kaede with a serious face. This amount of money could not be compared with the cost of doing a few experiments in the laboratory.
"Baichuan understands that since he has come to trouble Professor Matsumura, he is naturally prepared for a long-term commitment."
As he spoke, Shirakawa Kaede handed his business card to Matsumura Masayoshi.
He said a long time ago that if a company wants to have its own core competitiveness, core technology is indispensable.
Because of lack of money and limited conditions, Shirakawa Electric could only design its own circuit solution for the Walkman.
Now that the finances are a little more comfortable, Shirakawa Feng has begun to really plan to build a moat for Shirakawa Electric.
The technology that others cannot imitate and cannot be learned even if they get it is the real core technology.
Only by having chips of our own design can we form our own core competitiveness. Otherwise, what is the difference between Shirakawa Electric and an assembly plant?
If you want to compete with Sony, Panasonic and others, how can you do that without your own unique skills?
After looking at the business card in his hand, Matsumura Masaakio finally understood where Shirakawa Kaede's confidence came from. But can a student of Meiji become the president?
I wonder what kind of students did Kikuchi recommend to me? They look like troublesome people.
However, if he is the president, then what Mr. Shirakawa just said about making chips would be much more reliable.
A company provides funding, which can provide long-term and stable logistical support for chip research and development.
This is one of the most basic prerequisites for the smooth progress of scientific research tasks. Otherwise, Matsumura Masayoshi would doubt whether Shirakawa Kaede just had this idea in his mind at some point in his life.
"Mr. Shirakawa, to be honest, such a chip can be designed in theory.
But it is a systematic work that requires the participation of many people to improve design efficiency.
In addition, a DAC chip alone is not enough. It is best to design a DSP processor to assist the work of the DAC chip.
It would take too long for me to do all this alone, and…"
Masayoshi Matsumura glanced at the laboratory outside, and the meaning was obvious: he also had his own scientific research project.
Urgent matters are urgent, but we must not confuse priorities.
"Professor Matsumura, please rest assured. The development of DAC chips is not urgent. You can plan it as a long-term project.
In addition, in order to compensate for the impact on the professor's other experimental projects, Shirakawa Electric will provide 10 million yen in funding to support the laboratory free of charge."
Originally, Professor Matsumura was hesitant about such a time-consuming research and development project.
However, when he heard about the 10 million yen in free aid, he was immediately tempted. Wouldn't this provide funding for his other experimental projects?
Single-layer waveguide structure, disk antenna, etc., these projects will almost see results soon.
Once it's done, regardless of other things, at least he will have a great chance of having his manuscript accepted by top academic journals such as Nature or Science.
For a scientific researcher, it is a great honor to publish articles in the world's top academic journals.
Whether it is reputation in the industry or academic career, it will add a strong touch.
There is even a chance to receive the Purple Ribbon Medal awarded by the government. These great honors are sometimes even more exciting than wealth.
Thinking of this, Masaaki Matsumura recalled the experience of trying hard to persuade the director of the scientific research department, but being treated coldly in the end.
Sure enough, there is no harm without comparison.
But Baichuan Feng seemed to think that this was not enough and added fuel to the fire.
"Shirakawa will also visit your school's Industry-Academic-Research Office.
At that time, additional funds will be provided in the name of Shirakawa Electric to support the school's scientific research.
At that time, Professor Matsumura could request manpower support through the Industry-Academic-Research Office to speed up the development of chips.”
This has solved Masayoshi Matsumura's worries. It's industry-university-research cooperation, what a reasonable reason.
Just when Matsumura Masayoshi was about to agree, Shirakawa Kaede's next words made his heart skip a beat.
“In addition, if Professor Matsumura is willing, he is welcome to become a special advisor to SIC.
SIC focuses on the research and development of cutting-edge high-tech in the electronics field. With Professor Matsumura's academic ability, it is more than enough for him to become the head of an independent department through technology investment."
After saying that, Baichuan Feng took out another contract from his bag and placed it in front of Professor Matsumura.
"SIC? Technology investment?" Masayoshi Matsumura grasped the key point keenly.
“Yes, SIC is responsible for developing the latest technology for Shirakawa Electric, applying it to actual products and bringing it to market.
The profits will be shared in a certain proportion based on the sales volume of Shirakawa Electric's products."
SIC, S is the first letter of Shirakawa Romaji, which can also be understood as Super. IC stands for integrated circuit, which is a synonym for chip or integrated circuit.
At present, its first scientific research task is the research and development of DAC chips. Of course, other high-tech technologies will also be placed here in the future, not limited to chips.
SIC is a subsidiary established by Shirakawa Kaede by separating out Shirakawa Research Institute.
The registration has been completed and Shirakawa Electric holds 100% of the shares.
In order to attract high-end talents, Baichuan Feng also reserved a 15%-20% stock option pool.
This part of the equity will basically remain unchanged and will be retained even if it accepts subsequent investment or goes public.
Its function is to attract talents. Depending on their abilities, the option pool will grant different shares to each person.
However, since no talent has been signed yet, this part of the shares is temporarily held by Shirakawa Electric.
And now Professor Masayoshi Matsumura is the first technical expert that Shirakawa Kaede wants to sign. The big guy who can design chips must not be let go.
Of course, the contract is also conditional. Masayoshi Matsumura initially completed the chip research and development commissioned by Shirakawa Electric.
Only then will we really talk about the specific number of shares to be granted.
Or if Masayoshi Matsumura joins SIC now, his equity will be granted on a monthly basis after one year.
The so-called monthly grant means dividing the option shares into many equal parts and then granting them monthly.
For example, 1% of the shares are divided into four years. Starting from the date of employment, 1/48% of the shares are given every month until all options are obtained after four years.
Of course, for professor-level talents like Masayoshi Matsumura, the conditions do not need to be so harsh, and equity can be allocated at the discretion of the court.
The equity that Shirakawa Kaede set for Matsumura Masaakio would not exceed 3%, and this was only given because the other party was a semiconductor giant.
There will be a steady stream of talented people joining us in the future, and we must leave enough shares for newcomers.
Of course, the shares that ordinary talents can get are very small, perhaps less than 1%, and if they leave, they must follow the agreement, and the shares will be repurchased by SIC at the market price.
In addition, if necessary, Shirakawa Kaede will also find a way to transfer Yamazaki Teru to SIC.
Of course, there will be some preferential treatment in terms of shares, after all, he is a veteran.
Masayoshi Matsumura looked at the contract in front of him and struggled in his heart.
He knew very well that if this CD player had a good market in the future.
Then according to the shipment volume of consumer electronic products, the chips used in them must be indispensable.
It can be predicted that in the future, the chips designed by SIC will be widely used in actual products, and the profits from that share will definitely be very considerable.
It is even possible to sell the designed chips to other companies that need them , in which case...
No matter how high the salary can be, there is a ceiling to it.
But it’s different with equity. The higher the profit, the more dividends you get, and there is no ceiling.
Of course, the premise is that the product sells well, otherwise nothing can be achieved.
As if knowing what he was thinking, Baichuan Feng took out another piece of information.
"Professor Matsumura, this is the sales data of Shirakawa Electric for the previous month. Please take a look."
Masayoshi Matsumura took the information and immediately saw the sales figure of 3 billion.
This..., Masayoshi Matsumura felt his fingers trembling a little.
Although 3 billion is the sales volume, the profit must be very considerable. From this data, if SIC's chip technology is used, the profit will be divided into...
Masaaki Matsumura felt that it had been a long time since he had been so deeply moved by something as he was now.
As a professor at the doctoral level at Tokyo Institute of Technology, and also the instructor of the school's strongest electrical and electronic major, his annual salary barely reaches 8 million yen.
This already exceeds the annual salary of most people in Japan, but compared with the dividends just calculated, this figure may be exceeded within a few months.
"Shirakawa-san, to be honest, this is really exciting.
However, as a professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology, I usually need to balance teaching tasks and scientific research projects.
There isn’t a lot of time that can be spared, so…”
“Professor Matsumura, please rest assured that as a special advisor to SIC, there is no attendance requirement.
The professor can even arrange the work location at will, whether it is the laboratory of Tokyo Institute of Technology or the research room of SIC.
The professor must be aware of the chip R&D mission. Iterating once a year is already a very high frequency. So there is no need to worry about the time issue at all.”
In order to get Matsumura Masaaki to join SIC, Shirakawa Kaede also spent a lot of money. This is the first face of SIC, and it must stand up.
Later, Shirakawa Kaede can use Matsumura Masaaki's information to fool, bah, persuade other high-end talents to join.
You should know that although these professors don’t usually go out, they are still very famous in the circles of major universities.
Besides, there are so many talented people in Tokyo Institute of Technology, one person is not enough. It is so hard to get this connection, and it would be a shame not to recruit more people.
"Okay." Since things had come to this, Matsumura Masayoshi did not hesitate any longer.
Originally, I just planned to accept the other party's commission and do some industry-university-research cooperation to earn some extra money.
But the other party's ability to spend money was too strong, and he gave too much.
"Mr. Shirakawa's sincerity is really irresistible. Don't worry about the development of the chip. I will invite several professors to work on it at the same time."
Masayoshi Matsumura was also unambiguous. Since he had decided to join SIC, he immediately began to consider chip development.
He knew exactly what kind of help he needed given the professional knowledge involved.
After hearing what the professor said, Baichuan Feng was also very happy.
Isn't this just like searching for something everywhere but finding it without any effort?
"Then I'll leave the development of the DAC chip to the professor. Shirakawa will be waiting for your good news."
It’s good to have help. He is worried that he can’t find a breakthrough to contact other high-end talents.
With Professor Matsumura leading the way, won't we be able to defeat them one by one?
“Oh, by the way, please ask the professor to help make a list of R&D needs. At Shirakawa Electric, someone will be responsible for purchasing when the time comes.
In addition, SIC's research institute is under construction, and we would like to trouble the professor to help us check what equipment is needed.
When SIC is completed in the future, professors' scientific research tasks can be completed directly there.
Whether it is SIC’s research and development or the professor’s own scientific research tasks, the institute welcomes professors and other seniors to come.”
Only professionals know what professional instruments SIC needs. Shirakawa Kaede is also willing to ask whether Professor Matsumura will use the institute's equipment to do his own experiments.
Having spent such a huge amount of money, why would you still care about this?
Besides, advanced instruments and equipment are also a means to attract talents.
If Professor Masayoshi Matsumura's colleagues were invited by him to come to SIC to help, then wouldn't the equipment that is used casually also be a business card for advertising?
Professor Matsumura was more and more satisfied with Shirakawa Kaede's advice. "Since Shirakawa-san said so, I won't be polite either.
Let me first say that some of the cutting-edge equipment is not cheap, the unit price is basically several million dollars."
Several million US dollars, when converted, is likely to be over 10 billion yen.
Even though Baichuan Feng was prepared, he couldn't help but gasp at this moment.
Shirakawa Electric's monthly profit is about this amount now. After more than a month of fighting wits and courage with Sony, the patent fees it earned may not be enough to cover the cost of one device.
However, Baichuan Feng gritted his teeth. "Professor, rest assured, SIC will do its best to meet your requirements.
Even if there is a temporary hitch in turnover, all the equipment will be in place within a year.”
Money for research and development must be spent where necessary, and these devices are not purchased every year.
Most instruments should be fine after seven or eight years of use.
After hearing Shirakawa Kaede's answer, Matsumura Masayoshi put aside the last bit of doubt in his heart.
A company that dares to invest huge amounts of money to support research and development will definitely have a good future.
Many of these cutting-edge devices were what he had long coveted. Not only him, but most of his peers would probably find it hard to resist such temptation.
Masayoshi Matsumura picked up the contract on the table, glanced at it, and seeing that there was no problem, he picked up the pen and quickly signed his name.
"Professor, you don't have to do this." Bai Chuanfeng looked at him with a smile, "Professor, you can consult some professional lawyers for the specific terms of the contract before making a decision.
As a research and development-oriented company, SIC can withstand this test."
The necessary procedures must be followed, and it is not excessive to be cautious about contracts.
But Matsumura Masayoshi waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "Since it was that guy Kikuchi who recommended you, I think your credibility can be guaranteed.
Although that guy is a bit annoying, he is still reliable in this matter. "
Okay, Baichuan Feng was very skeptical that the reason why he could persuade him to join SIC was because of something he had done wrong.
In addition to various favorable conditions, Professor Kikuchi's guarantee was probably also a major factor.
It seems that we should never underestimate the friendship among fellow students, this complex and ancient bond.
After putting away their respective contracts, Baichuan Feng felt relieved.
From today on, Shirakawa Electric finally has its own real R&D capabilities.
Although no results have been seen yet, Baichuan Feng is full of confidence in the future.
“Shirakawa Electric will provide the experimental materials required by the professor as soon as possible.
If SIC has any suggestions, please feel free to ask.
Thank you for your care today, Shirakawa. I look forward to the day when SIC will grow stronger and stronger. "
Today's trip to Tokyo Institute of Technology was a complete success, even exceeding my expectations.
After finishing his work, Bai Chuanfeng was ready to leave. He knew that most people who were engaged in scientific research were very efficient, so there was no need to repeat some meaningless small talk.
Shirakawa Electric will have a dedicated team to follow up on the progress of chip R&D projects.
Including procurement, finance, etc., they will make project budgets based on the details of R&D.
Although Baichuan Feng has invested heavily in research and development, he does not mean to ignore financial supervision.
Leave professional matters to professionals, who will only be responsible for the general direction.
Matsumura Masaki understood what Shirakawa Kaede meant, and this was what was to be expected.
He nodded and said, "Mr. Shirakawa can come to the lab once every half month or once a month to check on the progress of the project.
If I'm not here, you can also contact Yi Yizai. If you have any needs or suggestions, I will pass them on to him. "
Even though Matsumura Masaaki often PUAs Yi Ya, anyone who can be PUAed by him shows some strength.
Thinking of the extraordinary look in Yi Yiya's eyes when he mentioned the huge sum of 8 million just now, Baichuan Feng couldn't help but smile.
Talents from Tokyo Institute of Technology should be discovered as early as possible. In a few years, when the bubble comes, it will not be so easy to poach people.