Three decades, witnessing the key figures in the wave of technology and the strength of the Chinese people.

The Relay of the Era Leader

In the last decade, we looked at Jobs, in this decade we look at Musk, and in the next decade we will look at Huang Renxun! As Nvidia's market value surpasses 4 trillion, Huang Renxun returns to the top ten global billionaires with a net worth of 143 billion dollars (only 10 billion less than Buffett) and a 3.5% stake, and the market is repricing for the AI era with capital voting.

The key link of Chinese entrepreneurs

In this wave spanning three eras, three Chinese entrepreneurs weave together key stories:

Zhang Zhongmou and Huang Renxun: A Friendship Across Generations Formed in Crisis

• 1997: In a dire situation, Nvidia was on the brink of bankruptcy (with only about 50 employees) due to the TSMC US team's neglect of collaboration. Jensen Huang directly wrote to Morris Chang. Morris was moved by the candidness and personally visited the US for an inspection, supporting their chip foundry. The first gaming chip RIVA 128 was successfully mass-produced, which not only saved Nvidia but also helped it become one of TSMC's top five customers within 2-3 years. This partnership became the starting point of trust, and Morris even considered poaching Jensen to be TSMC's CEO (which did not materialize).

• 2009: Crisis Breakthrough: TSMC's 40nm process yield issues caused huge losses for Nvidia, and the former CEO refused to compensate. After Morris Chang took back control, he calculated the losses within 48 hours and proposed a compensation plan of over $100 million, which Jensen Huang accepted. This move resolved the dispute and allowed Nvidia to contribute over $10 billion in revenue to TSMC each year, establishing a long-term deep partnership.

Zhang Zhongmou and Terry Gou: A Dual Connection of Kinship and Business

Terry Gou is the cousin of Zhang Zhongmou's wife, Zhang Shufen, and this familial relationship built a key bridge in the business world. In 2010, Apple was urgently seeking new manufacturers due to competition with Samsung, while TSMC was struggling to find a way in. As the founder of Foxconn (Apple's main assembler), Terry Gou directly brought Apple's COO Jeff Williams to visit Zhang Zhongmou's home. That evening, they finalized the cooperation intention, and TSMC secured orders with its 20nm process, even "gambling with borrowed money" on the Apple project. Intel had attempted to intercept the deal, but Zhang Zhongmou personally went to Apple's headquarters, and Cook said, "Intel is not good at manufacturing," which, along with TSMC's strong technical capabilities, solidified the partnership and allowed TSMC to establish a foothold in Apple's supply chain.

The influence of industry in the tide of the times

• Apple Era: By the end of 2024, Apple's market value will reach 3.9 trillion, approaching the GDP of France and the UK. If considered an independent economy, it could rank fifth globally (after the US, China, Japan, and Germany). The annual output value of the Apple ecosystem accounts for about 1.2% of global GDP, reshaping the global manufacturing landscape driven by the fruit chain industry.

• Tesla Era: Open patents drive standardization of electric vehicles, Tesla's annual revenue exceeds 100 billion, boosting the scale of the battery, charging pile, autonomous driving and other industrial chains to over 50 trillion, accounting for 5% of global GDP, creating huge waves in the tide of new energy.

• AI Era (NVIDIA): In July 2025, NVIDIA's market value surpassed 4 trillion, exceeding the GDP of the UK (3.8 trillion) and India (3.5 trillion). Its global market share of AI chips exceeded 90%, making it the absolute leader in AI computing power.

The rise of the voice of Chinese people in the supply chain.

From the IT era to renewable energy, and then to the rise of AI, the Asia-Pacific region (especially the Chinese) contributes over 70% to the supply chain. Foxconn and Apple, CATL and Tesla, TSMC and NVIDIA, mutually achieving success. With the advent of the AI era, the Chinese are holding more discourse power in the paradigm shift of enterprises, and this strength will continue to write new chapters in the future waves! #山寨季#