The conference room instantly erupted. Huaji had actually developed EDA?
"President Rao, when did this happen? Why hadn't we heard any news?"
"Did you develop it yourselves? Or is it a knockoff of Synopsys?"
"How come I never heard that Huaji was carrying out an EDA development project? If you've made it now, doesn't that mean you started planning at least ten years ago?"
"Ten years? No way! You were thinking that far ahead?"
Hearing the bosses' discussion, Rao Huiling could only keep smiling.
If she told them that Pangu EDA had been written by a child six years in advance, wouldn't their jaws hit the floor?
For the sake of these middle-aged men's jaws, Rao Huiling simply neither confirmed nor denied their guesses.
"President Rao, let me be frank. Even if you've developed EDA, we wouldn't dare use it."
"Synopsys and the others have stood the test of semiconductor manufacturers around the world. If we use them, we won't have to worry about problems arising during the engineering design stage. You know that if something goes wrong with EDA, it affects the entire tape-out."
"Not to mention the finished product. It might not even be usable."
"Of course, I'm not saying your EDA Software is bad. I haven't even seen it, after all. I'm just saying that we can't afford such a huge cost of trial and error."
"President Zhang is right! We all have families to support. We can't casually switch EDA."
"Have you even used the thing you developed yourselves?"
Seeing the mood turning sour, Yu Bei hurriedly said, "Everyone, rest assured. Anything our company develops is definitely already being used internally. We're only recommending it to everyone because there haven't been any problems."
"President Yu, how long has your EDA even been running?"
"If I remember correctly, you only deal with chip design, not packaging or manufacturing, right?"
Yu Bei said nothing, because the other party was indeed right. All he could do now was hope they did not know that Shuijidian had rejected Sanhua.
"Don't you know that if chip design files aren't made using the EDA of the three giants, foundries won't accept our orders?"
"We received notice about Sanhua being rejected by Shuijidian yesterday!"
"You're telling us to switch to your EDA? Aren't you asking everyone in the semiconductor industry to take the fall with you?"
"It's almost November now, and the New Year is close. After what happened to Sanhua, we were already on edge, terrified that a ban or restriction would land on us. And now you want us to willingly step into a minefield? I really can't do that!"
"Exactly! If we switch to your EDA, the entire industry could very well grind to a halt!"
The voices in the conference room grew louder and louder, and Luo Yao woke from his drowsiness.
Luo Yao disliked noisy environments. After listening carefully for a while, he understood the bosses' concerns. With a helpless sigh, he stood up, turned to the arguing bosses, and said:
"Do you know why Synopsys targeted Sanhua Enterprise this time instead of you?"
Why? Wasn't it because Sanhua had filed a complaint against Synopsys?
The bosses gradually stopped talking and looked toward Luo Yao.
Only then did they realize he was a young man.
Ignoring their scrutiny, Luo Yao continued:
"You think it was because Sanhua complained about Synopsys?"
The bosses were stunned. Wasn't it?
"That is only the surface. The deeper reason is that Sanhua recently expanded its production scale and secured more orders, including orders from clients in the Ugly Nation and other countries."
"When Sanhua gained those orders, it meant foreign memory chip manufacturers lost them."
"When our Hua Nation chip industry develops aggressively, do you think foreign competitors aren't afraid?"
"Don't forget that every country protects its domestic industries. Would they really sit back and watch our products run rampant on their soil, squeezing the living space of local manufacturers?"
"There are so many companies upstream, midstream, and downstream in the chip industry. Why do you think they wouldn't band together to target us?"
Luo Yao did not speak loudly, nor did he even use a microphone, yet his words struck them heavily.
"Little brother, are you saying that even if we don't provoke them, they'll still find an excuse to suppress us?"
Luo Yao looked at the speaker in confusion. "You aren't really stupid enough to think that if you hide your heads in your shells, others will spare you, are you?"
"..."
The blood pressure of the gathered bosses immediately soared to historic highs. Some of the more hot-tempered ones quickly spoke up. "How can you talk like that, kid?! How are we stupid?!"
Looking at him, Luo Yao said, "You see the three giants as tools, but you never considered that the three giants see you as actual tools."
"They harvest you whenever they want, restrict your development whenever they want, and in the end, you still think they're nice people."
"If you continue down your previous path, it won't be long before the three giants join forces with other sectors of the semiconductor industry to restrict you."
"Beyond software, this could also involve equipment, materials, and product sales."
"To put it simply, in their eyes, your role is to be their factories. You only need to earn the lowest-end processing fees. You don't need any innovation."
"Do you know Darwin's theory of evolution?"
"Survival of the fittest."
"If you don't want to change, then wait to collect Darwin's boxed lunch!"
Collect a boxed lunch?
Wasn't he basically saying they were going to die?
No one could accept being told that their company would not survive, especially not these bosses who had struggled in the semiconductor industry for half their lives.
Yet Luo Yao's words forced them to calm down and reexamine their relationship with the three giants.
A few steps forward lay a cliff, with the three giants waiting for them to walk over.
Behind them, the path was unclear. No one knew whether there was a swamp or a pool of water waiting.
"Little brother, what you said is indeed right, but you're talking like it's easy. As an ordinary boss, what I think about is how to make as much money as possible right now," said a potbellied older man as he stood.
"You may think I lack vision when I say this, but there are still six people in my family, including one child."
"Our factory has 1,387 employees. That isn't just a number!"
"They're living, breathing people. Each of them has a family behind them. If I use your EDA, we'll definitely be affected. Even if we can support ourselves, where will the orders come from?"
"To give a simple example, customers are used to chips being manufactured by Shuijidian. If we suddenly switch foundries, what will the customers think?"
"No orders means no income, and more than a thousand families will be affected because of it."
"I also want to try our own EDA, but the risk is too great."
"Only when you can take care of your own family can you care for everyone else. If I can't even protect my own family, where would I find the energy to worry about the bigger picture?"
The man's words resonated with the others. It was not that they did not want to take a gamble; they simply did not dare.
Huaji developing EDA was certainly exciting, but what came next?
How much would they have to pay?
"President Rao, what do we do now?" Yu Bei quietly asked Rao Huiling.
"The worst-case scenario is that we subsidize the losses they incur after using Pangu EDA."
Yu Bei was shocked. "We subsidize them?"
"Mm. The government gives us subsidies every year, but those clearly aren't enough. We'll need to contribute part of it ourselves. Fortunately, Luo Yao saved us a great deal of EDA development funding, so subsidizing them is money well spent."
As the two spoke, Director Sun suddenly walked over to Luo Yao and took out a microphone.
"I'll say a few words. The EDA Huaji developed this time is of great significance. We should cooperate where we should cooperate. Otherwise, everyone will sleep uneasily every night, always feeling that the three giants are about to come after them."
"So rather than suffer long-term pain, we might as well suffer short-term pain. This time, let's work together and see this through."
After hearing that, someone below objected. "Absolutely not! It's almost the end of the year. If you want to do this, wait until spring next year!"
"That's right! Let's get through the New Year first and talk about it next year!"
Just as the conference room reached an impasse, several people suddenly entered.
Director Sun had sharp eyes and immediately recognized them as people from the Hua Nation Sci-Tech Innovation Center.
"Everyone, please quiet down first." The newcomer wore a black suit. His voice rang like a bell, deep and powerful, carrying through the entire conference room. The room quickly fell silent.
"We at the Sci-Tech Innovation Center have already learned about your situation. Given the significant boost Huaji's newly developed Pangu EDA can provide to the chip industry, we have decided to provide enterprises that install and use Pangu EDA Software with subsidies of up to 20 million per year, so that we may overcome this difficult period together."
"In addition, enterprises using Pangu EDA Software will receive priority privileges when applying for other subsidies or participating in events."
"The subsidy application period is limited to today only. After today, there will be no further opportunity to receive these subsidies."
Everyone in the conference room was stunned.
Subsidies of up to 20 million per year.
Holy shit! Since when had the authorities ever been this generous?
They could even receive priority privileges?!
Then why wouldn't they hurry up and cling to the authorities' thigh?
"Where do we sign up?"
"I want to sign up! Hurry up and register me!"
"Director Sun, find people to assist Huaji with registration."
"Alright, I'll get right on it." Having received the task, Director Sun immediately took out his phone and began making calls to summon people.
The man in the black suit walked over to Luo Yao and said gently, "You're Luo Yao, right?"
Luo Yao nodded.
"Good, good. I've finally seen you today."
"If you need anything in the future, just ask. If Huaji can't handle it, we will certainly cooperate with all our strength."
This was so good?
Then if he lacked anything for future technological research, he could just go to them?
"This is a dedicated phone for contacting us. It can prevent eavesdropping and information leaks. If you need anything, call the number in its contacts."
"Then say the security code, 'Miracle,' and you can reach me."
Miracle?
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Luo Yao's mouth.
Mm, they would have one sooner or later.
At that moment, Sanhua's Zhao Pei hurried over to Rao Huiling and the others and said, "President Rao, should we start setting up the production line now?"
"With the authorities taking the lead, what are you afraid of?" Rao Huiling said with a smile.
"Oh, right. As for Synopsys, delay them as much as possible. Don't let them discover that we're changing EDA."
Zhao Pei nodded and eagerly rejected Synopsys's demand for a price increase...
P.S. Another bonus chapter for everyone! Please vote and keep reading to support us! We need data to get recommended~
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