March 1, 1991.
Not long after Murphys celebrated his twenty-second birthday, after more than two months of buildup, the product launch for Sophon Technology, the new star of the electronics industry under the Umbrella Corporation, finally began.
Hall Three of the Birmingham International Convention Centre had been transformed into a vast conference hall. In a space of nearly twenty thousand square meters, more than three thousand seats had been set up. Electronics distributors from regions all over the world, major media outlets, and even friendly rivals such as Intel, Apple, and Microsoft had all come from afar.
Everyone waited eagerly to see exactly what the Umbrella Corporation's nearly ten-billion-pound project would turn out to be.
To ensure the effect of the launch, Patrick had even spent three million pounds using fifteen hundred LCD screens to assemble a massive LCD display thirty meters wide and twelve meters tall, almost covering the entire wall behind the stage and directly setting a world record.
Just connecting and synchronizing all those screens had required eight servers equipped with Sophon Technology's latest chips, and they had even developed a dedicated collaboration program to complete the synchronized refresh of every screen.
In fact, the total preparation budget for the entire launch had reached ten million pounds, and that was merely for the display of a single product.
The launch began at 6:00 p.m., and by 5:30 the venue was already packed.
On the huge screen, there was only a countdown number, ticking away nonstop.
"Hey, Paul." A muscular bald man patted the suited American colleague beside him, who had just sat down. "Paul Otellini?"
The latter glanced at him. "Steve Ballmer?"
"Intel's keeping an eye on this company too?" the bald Steve Ballmer teased.
"Isn't Microsoft doing the same?" As he spoke, Paul Otellini tilted his