109: Chapter 109 Fanmi's Self-Developed Chip? Impossible!

"Is there any progress over at Fanmi?"

Watching Wu Chen run back excitedly, Yu Zhengqing couldn't help but ask.

"Samsung's launch event for their new camera phone just finished, and Fanmi immediately released a message about their camera!" Wu Chen drank a glass of water before speaking again, still panting.

"What does that signify?" Yu Zhengqing frowned slightly, looking confused.

"I know Zhou Fan and President Lei; back when they were developing Fast Charging Technology and the self-developed system, they were always quiet. They wouldn't post minor news on their official website. There must be a major breakthrough!"

"It's just a camera. Even if there's a breakthrough, so what? It doesn't necessarily mean anything!"

"No, you can actually tell something from the camera. Fanmi hasn't been standing still; they should be preparing for the launch of their second-generation phone!" At this moment, Qiu Zhengyang spoke in a deep voice.

"That's right, I have a hunch!" Wu Chen also said seriously, "They must be holding back a big move. The camera is just the beginning!"

"..." Yu Zhengqing looked at the two of them and fell silent.

"Do you think it's possible they are working on self-developed chips?" Qiu Zhengyang suddenly spoke again.

"How is that possible!" Yu Zhengqing instinctively retorted, shaking his head with a smile.

"Why not?" Qiu Zhengyang asked back.

"You should both be aware of the state of domestic semiconductor technology development; it lags far behind foreign countries, and the technical teams aren't mature. Where would they find the people? Moreover, Fanmi was founded less than a year ago. They are already working on a self-developed system, and now you think they're doing chips? Do you think that's realistic?" Yu Zhengqing frowned again.

"Before, nobody thought they could pull off the self-developed system, but didn't they succeed in the end?"

Qiu Zhengyang looked thoughtful; the more he thought about it, the more he felt it was possible. If the news about Likely a semiconductor company name refusing to cooperate was true, then Fanmi would have to find another way.

Either they find other chip suppliers—but Samsung and Apple use their own and are competitors, so that's even less likely—or other minor manufacturers lack the chip technology to support high-end smartphones.

That leaves only one path: self-development!

Although it seemed incredible, he knew that Fanmi had an absolute technical core. He couldn't read Zhou Fan, but he always felt that if Zhou Fan was involved, it wasn't entirely impossible.

"..." Yu Zhengqing fell silent again. He felt that what Qiu Zhengyang said had some merit, but he still thought it was unlikely.

Self-developed chips!

He had always felt that was something only giant foreign tech companies could do.

If it were that easy, someone domestically would have done it long ago. Since it hasn't appeared yet, there must be a reason.

"I also agree with Old Qiu. I know Fanmi quite well. Since they were founded, in such a short time, they've faced a lot of skepticism, and many people thought they were just a flash in the pan. But they've overcome every difficulty and made it to where they are now!"

"The suppression from foreign giants like Samsung and Apple didn't bring them down, so what's a little chip? I believe they must have a strategy for this too!"

Wu Chen's voice rang out again with a hint of certainty. In truth, rather than believing in Fanmi, he believed in Zhou Fan.

Regarding Zhou Fan's abilities, from the beginning until now, he seemed never to have seen a limit. Having his perceptions refreshed time and time again made him almost develop a blind faith.

"I'm impressed by the two of you and this baseless confidence. Well, let's just wait and see..." Yu Zhengqing said, shaking his head helplessly.

"Alright, instead of talking about this, we'd be better off writing a few more lines of code. I'm confident that our app has a limitless future!"

"The future is definitely the era of mobile internet, and mobile reading will become a major trend. You know Qidian Chinese Network, right? I heard news that they are already developing a mobile app. That is true foresight!"

Wu Chen looked at the two of them solemnly, his eyes shining: "I've bet everything on this. This time, it's do or die!"

"By 'bet everything,' you mean your pocket money and that car?"

"That is my everything!"

"..." Qiu Zhengyang shook his head.

Immediately, the sound of keyboard typing rang out again!

...

Warehouse Research Base.

"Zhou Fan, when can you hire more people? A project team this big has fewer than 10 people in total; even workhorses aren't used like this!"

Zhou Fan was in the middle of formulating the next few research plans when an irritable voice suddenly reached his ears. Then he saw Peng Yang walk up and slam a large stack of documents onto the table.

His face carried a trace of resentment.

"Old Peng, just hang in there a bit longer! We've been hiring, but you know our project is special; it's not that easy..."

Zhou Fan felt somewhat helpless. He knew better than anyone that the project team was in urgent need of personnel, but many of the people on his list were still college students, and recruiting fresh blood takes time.

He knew exactly how important the Room-Temperature Superconductivity project was. His principle for hiring now was "better to have no one than the wrong one." Unless they were partners he was familiar with from his past life, every person who joined had to undergo a background check, which was why the speed was so slow.

He had already suffered in his past life; a technical leak had occurred once. Otherwise, it wouldn't have happened that on the eve of a breakthrough in a key technology, they were suddenly hit with targeted foreign technical blockades, forcing the entire sub-project team to bypass patents, which was equivalent to starting over.

That lesson was too painful!

He absolutely did not want it to happen again.

"It's not that I'm complaining—I'm fine—but look at these young people on the project team; they are all starting to look dazed..." Peng Yang sighed, his tone softening slightly.

"I will speed up the hiring process, but you'll have to work hard for this period..."

"The New Year is coming soon. Are we taking a break?"

"Of course. This time, let them have a good rest. Give them a half-month holiday!"

"What about the project?"

"I'll keep an eye on it!"

"Forget it, I won't go back either. The sample is about to be finished. Let's finish it first!"

Peng Yang shook his head, then looked at the researchers not far away, frowning.

"How about we let them take turns on holiday to keep the project running normally? What do you think?"

"Let it be voluntary!"

Zhou Fan's expression was serious, and he actually felt some urgency in his heart. The transparent ceramic crystal was not only related to the progress of the Room-Temperature Superconductivity project but also to the upgrade of the lithography machine's optical components. It was definitely better to finish it as soon as possible.

There wasn't much time left for Fanmi. It seemed calm now, but the surging waves in the dark could erupt at any time.

The layout and development of domestic lithography machine technology had to be accelerated; otherwise, when that moment truly arrived, Fanmi could very likely be crushed in an instant.

The example of Huaxing from his past life was right there. Fanmi currently didn't have the solid foundation that Huaxing had back then. Once they encountered that level of blockade and suppression, it was truly possible they would collapse.

Once that day truly arrived, everything he had done would be in vain and mean nothing.