Tesla was founded in July 2003.
Strictly speaking, Tesla hadn't been founded yet.
However, before Tesla was founded, the source of Tesla's technology, AC-Propulsion, had been developing for a long time.
AC-Propulsion first produced an electric car called T-Zero. Later on, the founder of Tesla, Martin Eberhard, invested a sum of money in AC-Propulsion and hoped that they could build a new T-Zero using laptop batteries. After the new battery was produced, the range of this car reached an astonishing 480 kilometers. Martin Eberhard hoped that AC-Propulsion could improve and mass-produce this car, but AC-Propulsion didn't think that this car had any potential. Therefore, the two didn't reach an agreement. Then, Martin Eberhard decided to do it himself, and that was how he founded Tesla.
However, since Tesla was officially founded, and from what Elon Musk said, the T-Zero with lithium batteries had already been released, Li Mu speculated that Martin Eberhard might be looking for investors for this project.
Li Mu read Elon Musk's biography and remembered that he only invested in Tesla in 2004. Therefore, in fact, he already knew about this project in 2003. It was just that before 2004, he wasn't interested in investing in this project, and he was in the wait-and-see stage.
At this moment, Elon Musk had only heard about this project, but he didn't have the time or energy to learn about it.
Understanding this logic, Li Mu suddenly became excited.
In his previous life, he yearned for Tesla very much. After all, the earliest followers of Tesla were almost all people in the internet circle. After that, the influence of its products continued to increase. More people knew and accepted it, and they followed suit.
In Li Mu's eyes, Tesla was the perfect combination of the spirit of the Internet and traditional products.
As an Internet person, Li Mu once had doubts about countless traditional products. Take cars as an example. Li Mu had driven many kinds of cars in his previous life. He always had a question in his mind. A 9.7-inch iPad with excellent display and visual effects and smooth operation was only worth 3,000 yuan. Why couldn't any cars with prices ranging from tens of thousands of yuan to millions of yuan make their central control screen the size and visual effects of an iPad?
Why was it that in the era of people holding retina screen phones, the visual effects and system experience of a car's central control screen were as rough as a 2005 MP4? Why couldn't they just use a screen like an iPad? Was it because of cost limitations, industrial limitations, or did they not think cars needed a central control screen?
Later, Tesla was born. When Li Mu saw the huge and stunning central control screen of Tesla, he knew it was not that the car manufacturers couldn't do it, but that no one wanted to do it, or no one was willing to do it. And the moment Tesla was born, it meant that people in the IT industry finally entered the car market.
In addition, in Li Mu's eyes, the car industry was seriously lagging behind in IT technology. While the Internet people were desperately developing the Internet of Things, the arrogant car industry had been moving forward in its own dimension.
For example, after the arrival of the Internet of Things, even a kettle at home could be turned on and off remotely using a mobile phone. Why did most cars not even support mobile phone control?
In winter and summer, the first few minutes of entering the car were torturous. In winter, the car was as cold as an icehouse, and it had to wait for the water temperature to rise before it could warm up. In summer, the car was scorching after being exposed to the sun, and the air conditioner could not lower the temperature for a long time. If the Internet of Things technology could be used in the car, people could heat up the car or cool it 10 minutes before going out. Wouldn't people suffer a lot less?
Some people often forgot to bring their car keys or locked their car keys in the car. In the end, they had to break the window to enter. If the Internet of Things was solved in the car, they could open the car door with a tap on their mobile phone. Mobai had added this function to millions of bicycles. Why did most car manufacturers not even consider such a simple thing?
Some car manufacturers would use safety as an excuse, saying that the Internet of Things would bring hidden dangers to the car's safety. Li Mu felt that this was simply an excuse to avoid progress. In this day and age, mobile banking could even control hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of funds. People did not even worry about the hidden dangers of mobile banking. What was there to worry about with a car that weighed a ton?
After the Internet of Things was developed, even the unscrupulous bosses knew to install a GPS in their cars to monitor the car's location and information. Most car manufacturers did not think of installing one in their cars.
In short, before the emergence of Tesla, the car industry had been developing with its own unspoken rules. It was not until the emergence of Tesla that they realized the importance of technological innovation.
With such complicated feelings, Li Mu had some respect for Tesla. Therefore, after his rebirth, he was very interested in this project. He did not expect that his casual question would actually get the current situation of this project from Elon Musk. This made Li Mu's brain instinctively reflect a motive.
Li Mu could not afford a Tesla in his previous life. In this life, he wanted to buy the entire Tesla!
No!
Not just a Tesla. He wanted to buy Tesla and install a set of rocket boosters on it. He wanted it to plunge into the traditional car industry and smash it into pieces!
Therefore, Li Mu said to Elon Musk, "If you have time, help me investigate this project. Ask them to prepare a BP contract for me. If it's okay, I'll invest a few million dollars in them first."
Elon Musk said in surprise, "Boss, are you interested in cars?"
Li Mu did not answer his question. Instead, he asked him, "What about you?"
Elon Musk nodded. "I'm quite interested. I just didn't know you were interested in this too."
Li Mu asked him again, "How many men in the world do you think are not interested in cars?"
Elon Musk was instantly speechless. After a while, he smiled awkwardly. "You're right. All men like cars. They love cars as much as their lives."
Li Mu nodded and said to him, "In the future, I will definitely make multiple arrangements. Moreover, I will make multiple arrangements across countries, continents, industries, and fields. The best situation is that I have a share of all the industries that can make money in the world. That would be the most ideal situation. The global market for cars is so promising. Of course, I have to go in and experience it if I have the chance."
As he said that, Li Mu added, "When Makino Technology and Taobao Technology are both listed and have sufficient funds, it is not impossible to acquire a car manufacturing company."
Li Mu did not play games with Elon Musk. Although everything he said was very big and ordinary people did not dare to believe it, Li Mu did not hide anything at all.
In the future, he would definitely continue to make new arrangements. Not only would he have to create an Internet ecosystem, but he would also have to create an ecosystem that could combine multiple Internet and all possibilities. Only then would he have room for improvement under any circumstances.
Elon Musk was extremely surprised, but he quickly understood in his heart. At Li Mu's level, he did not have to consider vertical development or horizontal development. Instead, he had to consider comprehensive development.
After thinking it through, Elon Musk nodded. "I'll go see them after I return to Silicon Valley and ask them to prepare a BP for you."
Li Mu said, "You should also understand more about their actual situation. I hope that you can be bound to me in these new exploration fields."
Elon Musk asked in surprise, "Boss, what do you mean?"
Li Mu said seriously, "PayPal will definitely have room for improvement in the future, but for you, there's not much room for operation anymore. PayPal is like a hybrid crop that you've cultivated. You've spent a long time and a lot of energy to cultivate it. That's the most important incubation and cultivation period. However, as long as it's finalized, most of your work on this new breed will be over. You don't have to personally watch it grow and harvest, so in the near future, you'll still have to leave PayPal and do some other product incubation and cultivation.
"I believe in your ability, so if you're interested in this, I hope that the two of us can work together in the future. If there's a good project, let's invest together. I'll contribute a lot, and you contribute a small amount. Even if you don't contribute, I'll reserve a certain amount of shares for you. As long as you can help me manage and operate it well, I hope that we can have similar cooperation on many projects in the future. That way, I'll use my resources to increase the success rate of the project, and your interests will be more stable."
Elon Musk was excited and nodded solemnly. He said, "Boss, I'll be at your disposal in the future!"
Li Mu smiled slightly, acknowledging his attitude. As for the matter of "Tesla," Li Mu didn't mention it again, because he knew that with his current strength and size, it was a bit abnormal to pay too much attention to a small project that was still in the incubation period. Elon Musk was a smart man. He must know the benefits of riding on this ship, so he would definitely keep this matter in mind. That was enough.
Then, Li Mu looked at Elon Musk and said with a profound expression, "Why did you come all the way to Hollywood to find me? Now, you can tell me."
Elon Musk laughed and said, "Nothing can escape your discerning eyes, Boss."
This time, he was entrusted by Paul Keane to make peace, but he didn't expect that when he discussed the project he was planning with Li Mu, he accidentally got Li Mu's investment promise, and even got pulled into Li Mu's team. And he didn't even have time to do the serious business that Paul Keane entrusted to him.
So, Elon Musk said the reason why Paul Keane entrusted him to come here. "Paul's current consciousness is that he only wants to protect his son's reputation, even if he has to bear the infamy himself. That's why he wrote such an article. He doesn't ask you to take back the damage to the Keane family's reputation, but he only asks you to stop pursuing it and give him a chance to clear his son's name. He said that as long as you let him go, he will definitely repay you double in the future."
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