My Age of Investment

"No~"

Eberhard waved his hands repeatedly and said no, "Daren, this is not an investment, this is an acquisition of us.

And the pre-investment valuation we requested was $22.5 million. You didn’t halve it, you directly lowered it to $7.5 million, which is only one-third of what we asked for. "

Xia Jingxing smiled. The valuation he said was halved after the investment was halved to $15 million. The pre-investment valuation was indeed only $7.5 million.

"We cannot agree to this condition."

Tarpenning's face also changed from a look of enthusiasm to a look of coldness.

The reactions of the two were all expected by Xia Jingxing.

While he hasn't looked at Tesla's current financial statements, the office environment that he sees today couldn't be worse.

All of these can be inferred that Tesla's current financial situation is very bad, otherwise a group of people would not be shrinking to work in such a poor environment.

And Tesla's cold reception in Silicon Valley is not difficult to inquire about, he knew it clearly before he came.

But that's not to say Tesla just let him knead.

After a while, the man known by the outside world as "Iron Man" will appear and help Tesla complete the A round of financing. He himself led the investment of 6.3 million US dollars and became Tesla's largest shareholder and chairman.

The financial problems Tesla is facing now, and the funding problems it will face in the future, far exceed those of ordinary Internet startups.

This is a project that requires investment and a lot of money. It is like a giant beast that swallows gold and can only get in and out.

Therefore, it cannot be compared with ordinary equity financing cases.

Companies like Skype and LinkedIn, he invested hundreds of thousands of dollars and took a few shares, so the company would have enough money to run. Second and third rounds of financing.

No Tesla!

He has made up his mind that he must control Tesla like Iron Man and become the largest shareholder.

This investment cannot simply be regarded as a financial investment, but to make the most long-term layout and make Tesla an important piece of the puzzle of its own industrial empire.

"Have you ever wondered how much it would cost to build the first prototype? How much would it cost to mass-produce the first car?"

Xia Jingxing did not talk about money today, but talked about his feelings to the two.

He looked at the two Tesla founders and said sincerely: "$7.5 million is just my first investment.

After that, as long as the company needs it, I can continue to invest money in it until you build the first prototype car and mass-produce the first car. "

Speaking of this, Xia Jingxing looked at the two with firm eyes, "Not only do you think electric vehicles are a great cause that can change the world, but I also have the same feelings as you.

Tesla is destined to have a hard time trying to create a business that no one has created before.

And I, willing to make a commitment, keep investing in Tesla until the company reaches revenue breakeven.

If I don't have enough funds, I can even mortgage or sell my Facebook shares. "

The two were finally moved when they saw that Xia Jingxing was so optimistic about the future of electric vehicles.

Andrew stopped the small movements under the table, and sighed in his heart: Hey, there is no help, just wait for the pit!

"Daren, if you are so optimistic about the future of electric vehicles, why give me

continue reading! their low valuation? "

Eberhard shook his head and laughed, "The two of us together have invested millions of dollars in Tesla alone.

You only gave a valuation of 7.5 million US dollars, does not mean that we have completely ignored the results of our efforts in the past six months? "

Xia Jingxing originally leaned down and looked at the two of them, but now he sits back in his chair and spreads his hands, "The industry is currently cold, and the harder you work, the more negative assets there are countless examples.

You can look at other electric vehicle companies, how is GM losing money? All EV1s are recalled and destroyed.

I am not completely denying your hard work and achievements in the past six months.

But people should not be entangled in the past, we should look at the present and the future.

I put money in for you, and Tesla can get valuable money, survive, and grow better and better.

But if there is no capital injection, it is very likely to die prematurely, and it will only stay in concept forever, just a drawing in the computer. "

Xia Jingxing's words could be said to be heart-wrenching, and the two founders' faces turned blue and white when they heard it.

It sounds nice, but the subtext is to tell them to recognize reality.

If there is no compromise, it is very likely that the company will not survive. Even if you have more shares, it will always be just a piece of paper.

The same is true for Tesla, a start-up.

If you don't have money, don't even think about becoming a real car that can drive on the road.

Xia Jingxing watched his words, saw that the two founders had listened to their own words, and continued to fight while the railway was hot: "Facebook is now the largest social networking site, and its influence is growing day by day.

In the future, it is not impossible to sell Tesla on Facebook.

Anyway, Amazon has had a great time working with us, and Bezos has praised Blackburn, the vice president who took the lead in cooperating with us, at the executive meeting. "

"Darren, can the valuation be higher? With a pre-money valuation of $12.5 million, you invest $7.5 million in and take 37.5% of the shares."

Eberhard's psychological defense was constantly being broken through, and he began to lower his offer.

Xia Jingxing shook his head with a resolute look on his face, "I'm not bargaining with you, if I become a major shareholder of Tesla, the responsibilities and pressures I need to bear are far greater than you.

After making the prototype, I ran out of money for mass production, so I had to invest more.

After mass production, due to unsatisfactory sales volume, high R\u0026D expenses and the launch of follow-up models, as a major shareholder, I have to continue to invest.

I don't see Tesla as a money maker! "

Xia Jingxing shrugged, "It's not easy for me to make money. It's just a walk in the stock market. Why pour money into such an uncertain industry."

Tarpenning scratched his bald forehead and accidentally pulled two more hairs.

Looking at the broken hair in his hand, he felt terribly distressed.

But compared to losing some hair, he felt more distressed about handing over control of the company to others.

He stretched his face and asked, "Daren, do you have to control Tesla?"

"It's not!"

Xia Jingxing quickly weighed the psychological bottom line of the two in his heart, and said slowly: "I can serve as the honorary chairman, have the management rights of the company, and lead the team to develop cars, all of which can be handed over to you."

He looked at Eberhard, "You can continue to be CEO and take charge of the overall situation!"

He looked at Tarpenning again, "You can continue to be the CFO and manage the company well.

continue reading! money bag. "

He pointed to himself, "And I, willing to be your unsung hero behind the scenes, support you and build the best electric car in the world.

Of course, as the majority shareholder and chairman, I need to have the final say on all matters. "

When Xia Jingxing saw that the two were about to speak, he preemptively said, "I have invested so much money, and I must protect my rights.

If you really love the business, build a car with peace of mind.

You don't have to worry about money anymore, I'll take care of it! "

The two Tesla founders were very upset by what Xia Jingxing said.

On the one hand, he was unwilling to hand over the major shareholder of the company, on the other hand, he was moved by Xia Jingxing's plan.

Facebook's potential, they are there for all to see.

If the young man in front of him takes Facebook to a higher position, it means that Tesla has a steady stream of financial support.

"Darren, can you give us a promise to sign an agreement to invest in Tesla cumulatively over the next five years..."

Eberhard pinched his chin and thought, "How about a hundred million dollars?

I think $100 million would be enough for us to build a prototype car, a production car, or even break even. "

Xia Jingxing smiled faintly.

This big brother is also a pit bull. In order to pull Iron Man into the water, he told the other party that he would only need 25 million US dollars to mass-produce the car.

As a result, in 2008, the first model, the Roadster, was mass-produced and launched, burning a total of 140 million US dollars.

Iron Man can't do anything about this kind of scam, because he is a major shareholder, and he has invested so much money, and the sunk cost is too high.

He had to mortgage shares and borrow money, and pour money into this bottomless pit every year. By the time the first model was mass-produced, Iron Man had invested a total of $70 million in it.

At that time, it happened to catch up with the failure of the second launch of "Falcon 1", and then the 2008 financial crisis broke out. Everyone was short of money, and Iron Man's financial situation was even worse.

At the most dangerous time, Tesla faced the test of life and death. Just hours before Tesla was about to go bankrupt, Musk arranged a $40 million debt deal to save Tesla's ill-fated misfortune child.

It can be said that after Musk took over the pit goods of Tesla, he did not have a good life for a day.

?? SpaceX's small rockets come with little surprises and romantic fireworks from time to time, and ordinary people with small hearts can't stand the excitement.

It was not until the construction of the Damodu factory started and Tesla’s production took off that Iron Man felt the care of socialism for the first time, and jumped up to “Seaweed~Seaweed~”.

Xia Jingxing thought that taking over Tesla by himself would be considered a great merit, so that Iron Man could launch a small rocket with peace of mind and be buried on Mars as soon as possible.

"Daren, what do you think?"

Seeing that Eberhard had been silent, he thought that after hearing the astronomical figure of $100 million, he backed away.

He spread his hands and continued: "After all, what you say is unfounded. You want us to build cars with peace of mind, and we also need sufficient ammunition support."

"No problem, I agree!"

Xia Jingxing readily agreed.

Andrew covered his face with his hands and sighed secretly: How could a person who is usually so smart get this kind of disease?

"We also need to add a default clause, if you default, Darren, you will invest within five years.

continue reading! The amount did not reach $100 million. "

Tarpenning looked at Xia Jingxing, thought about it, and said, "I don't want you to compensate the two of us, but you have to take out 10% of the equity and put it into Tesla's option pool for a special incentive for major shareholders."

"That's a good idea!"

Xia Jingxing spread out his hands and said with a smile, "But it is estimated that the employees will not be able to get it."

Eberhard and Tarpenning were also decisive people. Seeing that Xia Jingxing had agreed to such harsh conditions, they no longer worried or hesitated, and readily agreed to Xia Jingxing's valuation offer.

Xia Jingxing glanced at Andrew who was sitting still like a mountain, "Why are you standing still? Hurry up and draw up an investment intention agreement?"

Andrew apologized to the two founders of Tesla, and dragged Xia Jingxing out of the factory-like Tesla office.