314: Chapter 314 Honda Signs a Contract

June 15th in Tokyo, the sky was a shade of blue that felt almost unreal.

Toshihiro Mibe had been standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window for a full twenty minutes.

Outside the window, traffic flowed along Aoyama Dori, and the glass curtain walls of Roppongi Hills reflected the blinding sunlight. Further in the distance, the snow-capped peak of Mount Fuji loomed, appearing like a painting hung on the wall.

He had sat here for thirty years.

From a regular engineer, to head of the technical department, to vice president, to president.

He had experienced the golden age of the Japanese automotive industry.

In the eighties, Honda swept the US market. The Accord, Civic, Prelude—every model made Detroit tremble.

In the nineties, the Civic became a global phenomenon, with cumulative sales exceeding twenty million units.

In the 2000s, hybrid technology led the world. The Insight was the first mass-produced hybrid car, two years ahead of the Prius.

Back then, Honda's slogan was "The Power of Dreams."

Now, on the draft contract in his hand, another line was written: "Starry Sky holds 60% of the shares, Honda holds 40%."

Toshihiro Mibe closed his eyes.

In 1948, when Mr. Soichiro Honda founded Honda in Hamamatsu, there were only a dozen people and a few old machine tools. He certainly couldn't have imagined that seventy years later, his successor would be standing in the most high-end office building in Tokyo, considering handing over more than half the control of a new company to a Chinese company that had only been established for three years.

The door was knocked.

The secretary's voice came through: "President Sannobe, the board members have all arrived."

Toshihiro Mibe opened his eyes and turned around.

Nine o'clock in the morning, the conference room.

Twelve directors sat around the long table, the atmosphere so heavy it felt like it could drip water.

Toshihiro Mibe sat at the head of the table, the forty-page contract spread out before him.

Someone spoke first. It was Managing Director Masato Yamada, sixty-three years old, who had worked at Honda for forty years and was one of the most senior directors.

"President Sannobe, this is equivalent to selling Honda's soul to the Chinese."

Toshihiro Mibe looked up.

"Soul? What is Honda's soul?"

Yamada was stunned.

Toshihiro Mibe stood up, walked to the whiteboard, and picked up a marker.

He drew two circles.

On the left, he wrote: Brand, Manufacturing, Channels, User Trust.

On the right, he wrote: Battery, Motor, Electronic Control, Smart Cockpit, Autonomous Driving.

He turned to face everyone.

"For the past seventy years, we have lived relying on the soul on the left. For the next seventy years, without the technology on the right, the soul on the left will just be a piece of waste paper."

The conference room was quiet for a few seconds.

Another director spoke, his voice gentler, but the question was equally sharp: "President Sannobe, can't we develop it ourselves? We have the largest R&D budget in the world and the best engineers."

Toshihiro Mibe gave a bitter smile.

"Develop it ourselves? We've been developing it ourselves for ten years, and our range still doesn't match the level Starry Sky had three years ago. Their battery energy density is twice ours, and their cost is seventy percent of ours. Their autonomous driving system has run ten million kilometers of real-world road tests; we are still running on simulators."

He paused.

"If we keep developing it ourselves, the market will be gone."

Someone still wanted to say something, but Toshihiro Mibe raised his hand to interrupt.

"Everyone, I understand your concerns. I have also hesitated. Last night, I didn't sleep all night, staring blankly at that contract."

His voice became low.

"But I figured one thing out. When Mr. Soichiro Honda founded Honda, what was his dream? It was to build cars. It was to let the Japanese people have their own cars to drive. It was to let Honda's cars run all over the world."

He walked to the window, his back to everyone.

"If he knew that seventy years later, because we refused to bow our heads, Honda's cars couldn't move, what would he think?"

In the conference room, no one spoke.

Toshihiro Mibe turned around.

"This is not betrayal. This is survival."

Ten-thirty in the morning, the last moment before signing.

Toshihiro Mibe returned to his office alone.

The contract on the table still had the last page unsigned.

He picked up his pen, then put it down.

He picked up the phone and dialed his wife's number.

"Hello, it's me. Signing today."

His wife was silent for two seconds.

"Are you hesitating?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Toshihiro Mibe looked at Mount Fuji outside the window.

"My father worked at Honda for forty years. If he knew that I was handing over sixty percent control of the company to the Chinese..."

His wife interrupted him.

"If father knew that Honda was going to go bankrupt, what would he think?"

Toshihiro Mibe was stunned.

His wife's voice was very calm, as if she were talking about a very ordinary matter.

"You are the president. Your responsibility is not to guard the glory of seventy years ago, but to guard the rice bowls of seventy thousand employees. Their mortgages, car loans, children's tuition, and their parents' retirement all depend on this job."

Toshihiro Mibe was silent.

"If Honda falls, what is the use of that glory?"

Toshihiro Mibe closed his eyes.

After a long while, he opened his eyes.

"Thank you."

He hung up the phone, picked up the pen, and signed the last page.

Eleven o'clock in the morning, Haneda Airport.

Honda's private jet taxied toward the runway.

Toshihiro Mibe sat by the porthole, looking at Tokyo Bay outside.

The sunlight shone on the sea, sparkling.

The vice president asked: "President Sannobe, what are you thinking about?"

Toshihiro Mibe said softly:

"In 1948, when Mr. Soichiro Honda founded Honda in Hamamatsu, there were only a dozen people and a few old machine tools. He certainly couldn't have imagined that seventy years later, his successor would go to China and hand over more than half the control of the company. Although it is just a joint venture, Honda has already lost control."

The vice president was silent.

The plane accelerated and took off.

Tokyo Bay became smaller and smaller, and the clouds became thicker and thicker.

Toshihiro Mibe closed his eyes.

Three o'clock in the afternoon, the private jet landed at Baoan Airport.

Toshihiro Mibe stepped out of the cabin door and was somewhat surprised to see that person on the tarmac.

Su Chen had come in person.

He was wearing a dark gray shirt, sleeves rolled up to his forearms, standing next to the airstairs as if waiting for an old friend.

"President Sannobe, welcome." Su Chen extended his hand.

Toshihiro Mibe shook his hand, with a firm grip.

"Mr. Su, Honda has entrusted its future to you."

Su Chen shook his head.

"Not entrusted to me. It is entrusted to us."

On the long table, the contract was forty pages thick.

In Chinese, English, and Japanese, every clause had been repeatedly scrutinized by thirty lawyers.

"Honda-Starry Sky Strategic Cooperation Agreement" Core Terms

Joint Venture Name: Starry Sky Honda Automobile Co., Ltd.

Registered Location: Wuhan, Hubei.

Equity Structure: Starry Sky holds 60% of the shares, Honda holds 40% of the shares. Starry Sky contributes 35 billion rmb, Honda contributes 35 billion rmb.

Technical Division of Labor:

Starry Sky provides: Battery system, motor system, electronic control system, smart cockpit, L3-level autonomous driving system

Honda provides: Vehicle design, production solutions, quality control, global sales channels, after-sales service system

First Model: Starry Sky Honda · Soul Motion (Electric SUV), to be launched at the end of 2020.

Production Base: Wuhan Economic and Technological Development Zone, with an annual output of 300,000 vehicles, expandable to 500,000 vehicles.

Target Market: Global, covering China, Japan, Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia.

Technology Licensing: Starry Sky technology is licensed for use by the joint venture, core IP remains owned by Starry Sky.

Brand Strategy: Dual-brand — "Starry Sky Honda" for the global market, "Honda" brand electric models will use Starry Sky's three-electric system.

Su Chen and Toshihiro Mibe took their seats respectively.

The pen fell.

Flashbulbs drowned the entire hall.

A joint press conference was held afterwards.

Below the stage, more than three hundred media outlets from around the world had their cameras and microphones aimed at the stage.

A CNN reporter raised their hand and stood up after being granted permission.

"President Sannobe, does this mean that Honda has abandoned its technological autonomy?"

Toshihiro Mibe's answer was very direct.

"Honda has not abandoned technological autonomy. Honda has chosen technological cooperation."

He paused.

"Seventy years of the automotive industry have proven that no company can remain a leader in all fields. Starry Sky is a leader in electrification and intelligence, and Honda is a leader in manufacturing processes and global channels. We are cooperating to provide better products to consumers."

A Japanese reporter raised their hand.

"President Sannobe, Starry Sky holds 60% of the shares. Does this mean that Honda has lost control?"

Toshihiro Mibe was about to answer when Su Chen took over.

"Control? What is control? Is it voting rights, or product definition rights?"

He looked directly at the Japanese reporter.

"The products of Starry Sky Honda will be jointly defined by the joint venture. Starry Sky's technology and Honda's craftsmanship, added together, are the cars that consumers want. This is not about who controls whom; it is about creating together."

The reporter wanted to follow up, but Su Chen had already turned to the next one.

The press conference ended after half an hour. The Starry Sky Honda cooperation meant that the US sanctions had failed; Starry Sky's technology would be monetized through Honda's brand and global channels. Once people got used to the Starry Sky Honda brand, Honda would never be able to break away from Starry Sky's technology system again.