The Edison Motors Partnership
A few days later, Maron Musk, the owner of Edison Motors, visited Starlink from the United States. Taesik welcomed him alongside President Cha. The passionate Maron Musk immediately began briefing them on the future goals he had prepared for Edison Motors, emphasizing why Starlink Deepmind was the essential partner for his company.
"I imagine I’m not the only one who has sent you a proposal... have you reached a decision yet?"
President Cha smiled. "Starlink Deepmind has not made any decisions yet. I intend to choose a partner in collaboration with the CEO here beside me and Lee Sang-hoon, the researcher overseeing our autonomous vehicle technology."
"That’s a relief. Edison Motors hasn't launched a product yet, but our goal is to end the era of internal combustion engines by releasing electric vehicles. Are you willing to join us on this journey?"
Caught off guard by the direct proposal, President Cha glanced at Taesik’s expression. Taesik replied with a smile.
"The most important factor is the attitude with which Edison Motors proposes this collaboration. If you aren't just looking to take our technology, but are willing to develop it together, acknowledge our know-how, and pay for the value we provide, I will accept your proposal."
"Of course. I believe an engineer's sweat should naturally be recognized."
"Then shall we get into the specifics? As you know, current autonomous driving technology is too costly to commercialize due to the price of LiDAR. Are you planning to commercialize it without LiDAR?"
At Taesik’s question, Researcher Lee Sang-hoon, who was in charge of autonomous driving technology, watched with sparkling eyes, waiting for Maron’s answer.
"Considering the costs, I believe we need to increase autonomous driving technology in stages using cameras and ultrasonic sensors. I would like to start by commercializing Level 2 autonomous driving."
At Maron’s response, Researcher Lee Sang-hoon spoke up. "Level 2 is partial automation; don't you think ultrasonic sensors are unnecessary? At the Level 2 stage, it's possible with just cameras."
"Ah! You must be the engineer in charge of the autonomous driving section. While Level 2 is possible with just cameras, I made the proposal because ultrasonic sensors are necessary when considering risk factors and potential variables."
"In the end, the AI program that processes the data from the cameras and sensors will be the core, then."
"That’s correct. The hardware is mostly at a similar level; it’s a situation where the victory or defeat in technical prowess depends on the AI program."
Researcher Lee Sang-hoon began to ponder how to process the data obtained when using ultrasonic sensors instead of LiDAR, and Taesik decided to negotiate the technical fees for the autonomous driving S/W that Starlink Deepmind was leading the development of.
"Then it seems cameras and ultrasonic sensors will be included in all vehicles. How do you plan to price the S/W?"
"Do you prefer an annual fee or a per-vehicle sales model?"
Knowing that Edison Motors would operate at a loss initially and only turn a profit in 2020, Taesik made a different suggestion.
"How about giving us shares? To push this as Edison Motors' exclusive technology and coexist, I think holding shares would be more helpful."
"Hmm... I came here to propose a collaboration..."
"If necessary, I will also invest in Edison Motors."
"We are in a situation where we need more investment capital... If you invest, what will you do about the S/W costs?"
"Include the S/W costs in the investment amount you are proposing."
"I will hand over 5% of the shares, including the $5 million investment and the S/W price. In exchange, I request exclusive rights to all technology related to autonomous driving."
Although Taesik knew that the value of 5% of Edison Motors' shares was not much now but would become immense in the future, it was difficult to grant exclusive rights.
"Exclusivity is out of the question. There are many other places seeking autonomous driving technology besides Edison Motors. Shall we stop the negotiations?"
Maron backed down at Taesik’s powerful counter-strike.
"Hahaha. It’s a negotiation, so we have to give and take. Understood. Let’s sign the contract immediately."
Taesik decided to sign the contract, allocating 0.1% of the 5% stake as an incentive for Researcher Lee Sang-hoon. While waiting for the contract to be drafted, Taesik asked Maron, "Is the space industry progressing well?"
"Ah! You mean Space Y. It’s still in the early stages, so we are investing a lot of capital, but I believe the future value is high."
"Are you aware that we are conducting a satellite business at Starlink Communication?"
"Yes. I found out about your satellite communication business before I came here."
"South Korea’s rocket technology is lagging behind other countries due to the ROK-U.S. missile guidelines, and I would like to commission Space Y to launch our artificial satellites..."
Maron, who had been pouring astronomical amounts of money into Space Y without generating any revenue, brightened at the mention of a launch commission.
"That is possible at any time. What is the target orbit?"
"We are targeting both low Earth orbit and medium Earth orbit. For low Earth orbit satellites, we are thinking of small satellites weighing about 200kg, and we want to launch more than 30 at a time. And for medium Earth orbit, we are thinking of about 10."
Maron was delighted, as the satellites amounted to half the weight capacity of the launch vehicle he was currently developing.
"We will launch them whenever you want. The launch vehicle has spare capacity; how about increasing the number of satellites?"
"How many can you handle?"
"It seems possible to handle up to 60."
"What is the launch cost?"
"Based on current estimates, I think $300,000 per small satellite is sufficient."
Maron, who was happy about being entrusted with the launch for Space Y, asked Taesik a question. "Medium Earth orbit is likely for satellite navigation systems and communication, but what is the purpose of the low Earth orbit satellites? The quantity seems too large for military use..."
"I am thinking of a business that connects the entire world into a single communication line using satellites, without going through ground base stations for current mobile phones."
Taesik felt a pang of conscience as it was similar to the Starlink business Maron had conducted before the regression.
"Ah! My dream is to relocate humans to Mars. That’s why I founded Space Y. The cost of rocket launches is still too high, so I am thinking of reusing launch rockets to reduce costs."
"Ah! So that’s why you founded Space Y. But why aren't you managing Edison Motors yourself; why did you appoint a separate CEO?"
"I don't have the capacity to run two companies at the same time. The business progress of Edison Motors is slow, so I am considering replacing the CEO."
"If it’s frustrating, managing it yourself might be more helpful. It’s not easy to find a manager who shares your vision."
"It seems there will be many matters for which I will need your cooperation in the future; could I have your personal contact information?"
Agreeing immediately to Maron’s suggestion, Taesik handed over his personal contact information and signed the prepared contract.
"When will Starlink’s satellites be ready? I will adjust the launch schedule to Starlink’s timeline."
After checking the satellite production schedule provided by President Ryu Gwang-soo, Taesik replied, "We will hand over the satellites by the end of this year."
"The schedule is tight. We will also have to prepare the launch vehicle to match Starlink’s schedule."
Taesik and Maron shook hands, agreeing to sign the launch commission contract at the end of the year, both expressing satisfaction with the deal.
Six months after giving the order to develop guided bombs for the TA50 at Starlink Defense, a report came in from President Park In-tak that development was complete.
"You completed the development faster than I thought."
"Having the experience of developing the Switchblade made creating the guided bomb easier than expected. The simulation results are also good, and now all that remains is the aircraft drop test."
"What did President Jo Yoon-je of Starlink Aviation say?"
"He said he would perform the mounting test during the TA50 aircraft test evaluation process. But he asked if it would be mounted on a manned fighter or an unmanned fighter... is there something I don't know about?"
Taesik had decided to equip the TA50 with an AI-based autonomous flight program and keep it secret from everyone except those involved, so he hadn't informed President Park of Defense about it. As the time for the public reveal was approaching, he explained what was being developed at Deepmind and clarified that the guided bomb would be mounted on both manned and unmanned aircraft.
"I knew you won the autonomous driving car competition a while ago, but I had no idea you were expanding into fighter jets. Is it possible to apply this to the Switchblade as well?"
President Park was interested in operating suicide-type drones without human intervention.
"Technically it’s possible, but it’s dangerous to leave attacks to AI. The AI’s level of perfection is still low, so its application is limited."
"Then, is it partially possible?"
"What function do you want to put AI into?"
"Currently, the Switchblade operator is directly controlling it to self-destruct, but couldn't we have the Switchblade automatically self-destruct on an object designated by the operator? There are complaints coming in from countries we’ve exported to that operator training is difficult."
"That much is fine. It seems there would be no problem if it’s at a level where it only proceeds with attacks on targets designated by the operator."
"Are you giving me permission?"
"Yes. I will instruct President Cha Young-jin to cooperate."