Disadvantages of latecomers

After Lin Yuan joined Lanbiao Factory, it only took him three days to rebuild the entire delivery algorithm model for them.

After all, code, while troublesome to write, is very simple to copy.

Good Group and Lanbiao Factory could, in any case, share a set of delivery logic.

Lanbiao Factory quickly allocated computing power equipment and organized personnel for algorithm verification, after which the algorithm went live.

The first city where the algorithm went live was naturally Zijin City, but after its launch, it made no impact whatsoever.

Good Group, leveraging its first-mover advantage, attracted a large number of merchants and delivery riderss, and now the order volume on Lanbiao Factory's platform was no longer on the same level as Good Group's.

The disparity in order volume led many merchants to simply close their Lanbiao Factory platform access, choosing to only operate on Good Group's platform. This also led to a sharp decrease in delivery riders orders for Lanbiao Factory.

Because food delivery is a volume-driven industry, no matter how powerful an algorithm is, it cannot compensate for insufficient order volume.

If there aren't enough orders, optimizing the delivery process is futile. For if the skin is gone, what can the hair attach to?

Only then did the people at Lanbiao Factory recall what Lin Yuan had said in the meeting: the counterattack against Good Group could not just rely on technical means; the first-mover advantage could not be offset by simply copying their work.

The audacious move Lanbiao Factory thought of next was: we'll also issue subsidies.

When this proposal was put forward in the meeting, Lin Yuan merely asked indifferently, "How much in subsidies can we issue? How much ammunition can Alibaba provide us?"

Mr. Zhang immediately interjected, "The higher-ups are very concerned about the food delivery business. Originally, the food delivery business was already profitable, and it's also a highly valued traffic entry point for the group. It's a crucial entry point for other local life services and financial lending."

Lin Yuan understood. The Tencent ecosystem never lacked traffic; they were constantly thinking about how to monetize the traffic from social platforms. Conversely, the Alibaba ecosystem lacked traffic; they were always thinking about where to acquire it. And food delivery platforms, thanks to their user scale, were inherently excellent traffic entry points.

Therefore, for the higher-ups, food delivery platforms could not only earn money from food delivery but also from traffic. Naturally, they were willing to invest heavily to secure it.

"But Mr. Zhang, Good Group now has self-sustaining capabilities. They can continuously gain profits from the stock market, and even when they issue additional shares, there are many institutions lining up to buy. I don't think it's a wise move for us to compete with them on ammunition."

After witnessing Lin Yuan's foresight, Mr. Zhang was already very attentive to his opinions. "Tell me your thoughts."

"To strike a snake, strike its seven-inch mark. Good Group is currently on a strong upward trend, so we should retreat a good distance."

"What do you mean?"

"We'll add fuel to the fire, creating a perception that Good Group is on the verge of dominating the food delivery market. Let it surge in the stock market. Good Group is, after all, a listed company; they will definitely be unable to resist the temptation of the stock price, and then, like a group of sharks smelling blood, they will rush into the stock market and hunt frantically.

After that, it will trigger stock market regulation in HK.

This isn't even the main point. The main point is that we will be concerned that financial market volatility will cause Good Group's food delivery market to collapse again. With so many delivery riderss now relying on the Haotuan Waimai platform for their livelihood, and so many mouths depending on it for food, the state will naturally worry that its instability will affect employment."

"Originally, Good Group had been very patient, always suppressing its bloodthirsty impulses, but as long as we give it a push, I don't believe that its large group of shareholders will be able to resist the enormous profits."

Lin Yuan's meaning was: many people can influence a listed company's decisions. Even if Good Group's CEO could restrain himself, it would be impossible for so many investment institutions to do so. Because Good Group was not their biological son; they invested in Good Group to make money. As long as they could make big money now, they wouldn't care about a steady, long-term flow.

"Then how can we add fuel to the fire?"

"Can we issue a financial report, perhaps hesitantly announcing to the public that our Lanbiao Factory is on the verge of collapse? Anyway, we're not a listed company; our parent company is. With that layer in between, there shouldn't be as much performance pressure."

Mr. Zhang looked troubled. "Mr. Lin, you also said that our parent company is a listed company, so we also have pressure regarding financial reports. The higher-ups definitely won't approve this kind of operation."

Lin Yuan pondered slightly, "Then what if we make early arrangements in the stock market? We can recover the losses from the financial report through the stock market. And we can go long first, then short later, earning two rounds of money. That should compensate for a lot of losses.

Short-term profit isn't our goal; our goal is to completely disrupt the food delivery industry."

Mr. Zhang carefully considered Lin Yuan's words, "If executed properly, your method could indeed work. But the risk is too high. It's not mainly operational risk, but rather regulatory risk. Disrupting the food delivery market would greatly affect employment, and manipulating the stock market by taking advantage of the situation is a serious crime.

Any one of those is enough to ruin us."

Lin Yuan sighed, "Mr. Zhang, you've been in the internet industry for so many years. You should know that the first-mover advantage will cause the gap between Good Group and us to widen. One step behind means every step behind. Once Good Group truly obtains the official city information service entry points in various places, it will truly succeed in landing, transforming into a public welfare project.

At that time, there will naturally be a place for us. As long as we maintain parity with them in delivery costs, our company will always have a share of the market.

Just like AMD and Intel,

Good Group will be Intel then, and we will become the accompanying runner and backup AMD.

The state won't let us die, to prevent Good Group from becoming completely dominant, but it also won't give us much support, because the state won't interfere too much with the market.

So, Mr. Zhang, do you want to be AMD? If our company reaches that point, you would have already been dismissed."

Seeing Mr. Zhang's face twitch, Lin Yuan continued, "Instead of being led by the nose, it's better to go all out. You're worried we'll break the law, but hasn't Good Group broken the law?

Did the higher-ups not know about Good Group's previous intentional self-slander and stock price manipulation in the HK stock market? They just chose not to pursue it, given that it did indeed promote the development of the food delivery industry.

As long as we can completely smash the food delivery market, at that time, the state's concern will be to end the chaos quickly. As long as we force Good Group to willingly join us in muddying the food delivery market, the state won't be able to deal with either of us.

Because if they deal with us, who will they rely on to clean up the mess, who will rebuild the food delivery market, and who will provide employment for so many delivery riderss?

We don't need to feel any guilt.

Our disruption of the food delivery market is merely bringing problems to a head earlier.

If we let Good Group continue operating like this, who knows what kind of situation it will be in the future.

What achievements did Intel make after becoming dominant? On mobile, wasn't it still being crushed by a small company that started in a garage—ARM?

The state is now also cooperating with Good Group reluctantly, knowing that Good Group is not a good thing, but unable to find a substitute. This is also because our own company isn't competitive enough. As long as we show the ability and determination to contend with Good Group, I believe the state can tolerate the short-term chaos in the food delivery market.

As the saying goes, 'No destruction, no construction.'"

Lin Yuan's words made Mr. Zhang nod repeatedly. "You've given me a lot to discuss with headquarters."