How A Ride-Hailing Driver Comes To Dominate The World? [EN]: Chapter 701

701. Give You Face, You Have to Take It—What’s Wrong With a Ride-Hailing Driver Having Some Money? [A sarcastic remark implying someone is being unreasonable or greedy.]

701. Give You Face, You Have to Take It [A shorter version of the above, used as the chapter title for emphasis.]

The drivers were ecstatic and quickly edited the videos they had taken, posting them on platforms like Douyin [TikTok’s Chinese counterpart]. However, they soon discovered that any videos and photos featuring Yang Chen failed the platform’s review process, while those of Wang Nianming were uploaded without issue.

“I attended the strike rally earlier and met Mr. Yang from Starlight Group and Mr. Wang from Wanda Group. These two wealthy individuals are so down-to-earth! Mr. Yang promised to help us communicate with Baidu Group to recall Cabbage Express [Baidu’s autonomous driving taxi service]. Mr. Yang is a good person, truly handsome and kind.”

“It’s no wonder you can’t find any photos or videos of Mr. Yang online. All the platforms are blocking his content! Weibo [Chinese Twitter], Kuaishou [Short video platform], Red Book [Lifestyle and e-commerce platform], Douyin—they all fail the review. Mr. Yang is really handsome, very approachable, and doesn’t have the arrogance you’d expect from a wealthy person. He seems like an ordinary guy. And Mr. Yang really does drive a ride-hailing car; the rumors are true! He said he’ll get Baidu Group to recall Cabbage Express, saving millions of us drivers.”

“The difference between wealthy people is striking. Mr. Yang said that autonomous driving taxis could be launched, but now isn’t the right time. We should wait for the country to achieve industrial upgrades and for the economic situation to improve, so we can provide more job opportunities. Then it would be appropriate to launch Cabbage Express. That way, everyone can benefit from the convenience without driving millions of us drivers into poverty. Middle-aged men can’t find jobs; ride-hailing and food delivery are our last hope. I hope capital doesn’t push us to the brink. Looking forward to good news from Mr. Yang, and wishing the Starlight Group even greater success.”

…

Ride-hailing drivers eagerly shared these video captions, praising Yang Chen and the Starlight Group.

The official Weibo and Douyin accounts of Yang Chen and the Starlight Group’s various companies quickly became buzzing with activity.

However, the comments section was sharply divided.

Drivers and other middle-aged individuals who had struggled to find employment were thanking Yang Chen, while others were criticizing him.

Comments in favor:

“Mr. Yang is absolutely right. Now is not the time to launch this kind of thing. We can’t let millions of us drivers starve to death. Don’t tell me to go work in a factory or something; my cousin went to a factory, and they specifically said they don’t want anyone born before ’86.”

“They say I’m too old to work at 35 and too young to retire at 65. You can’t just erase those 30 years in the middle, right? We have to eat. Mr. Yang is right; it’s not that capital shouldn’t be allowed to innovate, but the timing isn’t right. At least wait for the economic situation to improve before doing it.”

“Why is there such a huge difference in how rich people behave? Mr. Yang’s vision is so broad; he donates technological achievements to the country and the people at every turn. Meanwhile, some capitalists first try to squeeze a few cents from vegetable vendors, and now they want to take away the drivers’ jobs.”

“I’m not a driver, but I think we should leave a way out for middle-aged people. Besides, Cabbage Express is too rule-abiding. It doesn’t take shortcuts, which makes already congested roads even worse. Our country’s roads aren’t suitable for autonomous vehicles because strictly following traffic rules makes it impossible to navigate many situations. It’s better to recall it as soon as possible; don’t hinder our travel.”

…

Comments criticizing Yang Chen:

“I think Mr. Yang is wrong this time. This should be left to market regulation and shouldn’t be artificially interfered with. Cabbage Express is really cheap; you can ride for more than ten kilometers for just a few bucks. As for whether the price will increase in the future, that’s a problem for the future. I’m enjoying the benefits now.”

“What are these taxi drivers complaining about? What were you like before? Don’t you remember? You wouldn’t go far, you wouldn’t take short trips, you wouldn’t pick up passengers during shift changes, and you’d make me go several kilometers out of my way just to get the starting price. Now you’re saying you need to eat? Mr. Yang shouldn’t help them; survival of the fittest is the law of nature. You shouldn’t forcibly change the course of history.”

“Artificial intelligence is the inevitable future. Mr. Yang, who has always been involved in high-tech, must know this, right? But why do you still want to interfere? You don’t want to stop technological progress just to get a few more orders, do you?”

“I support whoever benefits me, and whoever takes away my benefits is my enemy. Mr. Yang, you are now my enemy.”

…

At nine o’clock in the morning, Yang Chen called the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Information Security, and other departments, requesting them to send a representative to Baidu Group to attend the meeting.

Yang Chen had carefully considered that Baidu Group must spin off its autonomous driving business, and the government must be the major shareholder.

The current major shareholder of Baidu Group is DFJ [Draper Fisher Jurvetson, a venture capital firm]. Yang Chen’s attempt to acquire their shares has not yet been successful.

And the most important aspect of autonomous driving technology is the complete control over the status of every road in the country, which involves national security issues.

Can we guarantee that a company dominated by foreign capital won’t leak this information?

Suppose the specific details of every road and every building in our country are controlled by foreign entities. If a conflict were to occur, we would have no secrets. How terrible would that be?

Therefore, Yang Chen’s goal today wasn’t just to have Baidu Group recall Cabbage Express, but also to have Baidu Group spin off its autonomous driving business and ensure that the information server is located within Dragon Country [China]. This matter concerns the safety of 1.4 billion Dragon Country people and must be accomplished.

In response to the netizens’ comments, Yang Chen personally posted a message on Weibo.

“Artificial intelligence should be developed, but it shouldn’t be used to compete for ordinary people’s job opportunities for the time being. For example, autonomous driving technology should be used in private cars as an auxiliary function, and autonomous driving cars shouldn’t be developed separately to be used as ride-hailing cars. Many people blindly follow the crowd and cheer for a few dollars of discount. Do you know that if the government didn’t restrict the use of robots, 99% of factory assembly lines wouldn’t need manual labor at all and could be completely replaced by robots with lower costs and higher efficiency? Robots don’t complain about overtime pay, and robots don’t need five social insurances and one housing fund [mandatory benefits in China] or other benefits. In the event of a work injury, the cost of repairing or replacing a robot is much less than the compensation for a real person. Programs like screwing screws are too easy to design, and hundreds of millions of people will lose their job opportunities. The assembly lines in our Starlight Motors workshops are all robots, and only a few operators are needed to monitor the computers. Do you also want the assembly lines for mobile phones and other products to be replaced by robots? I dare say that many of those who say they support whoever gives them discounts are ordinary workers because high-end workers all have their own cars. If we open up autonomous driving ride-hailing cars, should we also open up assembly line robots? So, what will those hundreds of millions of workers eat? Not only assembly lines, but also couriers, food delivery drivers, chefs, tailors, and even doctors—my company can now design robots to replace manual labor. That’s right, robots can also replace doctors in some departments, and they’ll even be better than real people. Taking X-rays, blood tests, and prescribing medicine based on the reports—is this three-step process difficult to design? Moreover, robots won’t treat patients poorly, and patients don’t need to be humble to robots, and they don’t need to give red envelopes [bribes], because the program is fixed, and robot doctors will be more standardized and strict. Do you think patients will prefer robot doctors? Even painting, comics, online literature authors, etc., can now be done with AI. If we blindly pursue so-called technology, 90% of the people in our country will have no job opportunities. The times are eliminating you, and I’m just slowing down this process. I don’t ask ordinary people to have a high level of awareness to support me, but don’t boo me. I’ve now arrived at Baidu Group headquarters and will soon hold a high-level and shareholders meeting. I’ll tell you the results. Go do what you need to do; don’t stay online all day. Cherish the time when you can still have a job; maybe one day I won’t be able to stop it, and you’ll have to take to the streets. However, I can guarantee that the ride-hailing and food delivery industries will always be the last resort for middle-aged people. I’ll buy a courier company later. Between the ages of 35 and 65, you always have to live, right?” This Weibo post was quickly pushed to the top of the trending topics by netizens.

“I apologize to Mr. Yang. I was indeed a bit ignorant and forgot my place for a few dollars of discount. If factories really use robots, we really can’t survive.”

“In fact, Mr. Ren of Dragon for Group [Likely a reference to Ren Zhengfei of Huawei] said long ago that if ordinary people don’t work hard, they won’t even have the opportunity to work in the future. Artificial intelligence will do better than people. Those who shout every day that learning isn’t the only way out should also wake up. In another twenty years, see if you can survive without learning. The government can’t always suppress technology and prevent it from progressing. Once the government opens up the application of artificial intelligence, it will really be like what Mr. Yang said; many industries will no longer need manual labor, and you really don’t deserve to live if you don’t study well. Alas…”

“It still depends on Mr. Yang’s vision being broad enough. I hope Mr. Yang can really stick to the bottom line and ensure that the ride-hailing, food delivery, and courier industries aren’t replaced by artificial intelligence, leaving us with the last resort. I’ve been unemployed for half a year, and when I look for a job, they either say I’m too old to endure the work like young people, or they say the salary I want is too high and not as cost-effective as recent graduates. Hehe… If I hadn’t received N+1 compensation [Severance pay in China], I wouldn’t be able to hold on now. If I can’t find a job before the end of the month, I can only drive a ride-hailing car.”

“Alarmist! Don’t make excuses for yourself. When you’re out trying to make a living, you have to admit your mistakes and take your lumps. It’s not good for such a big boss to quibble on a public platform, right? I don’t understand artificial intelligence, but I don’t understand Dragon Country people? As long as there’s an opportunity to make money, they can’t let it go. Therefore, your saying that the government is suppressing the use of robots is pure nonsense.”

…

“Hehe… According to you, artificial intelligence can do everything, so what do we need humans for? I don’t believe that humans will invent technology that can replace humans. If I were a researcher, I wouldn’t develop such technology.”

…

Baidu Group.

Director Li organized the group’s senior management and notified the shareholders to send representatives to attend the meeting. If they couldn’t come in person, they could participate via video.

At three o’clock in the afternoon, the meeting officially began. Those who could attend came, and those who couldn’t also made time to participate via video.

After some unimportant greetings, Yang Chen cut straight to the point.

“I generally don’t interfere with the management and operation of the companies I invest in. I just need to receive dividends on time. But this time, I have to step in. Technological progress is a good thing. The autonomous driving technology developed by the group can cooperate with car companies and shouldn’t create ride-hailing cars to block the few remaining paths for middle-aged people. Everyone knows how bad the economic situation is now. The unemployment rate remains high. If you cut off the path for millions of drivers, how will the families behind so many people live? Enterprises enjoy various preferential policies in the process of developing from small to large and should bear certain social responsibilities. This isn’t just empty talk or moral blackmail; it’s a fact and a necessity. Many companies have autonomous driving technology; why haven’t they thought of creating ride-hailing cars to compete for the interests of the ride-hailing market?”

At this point, Lucas, the representative of the major shareholder DFJ, immediately retorted: “When we do business and invest, profitability is the primary consideration, and social responsibility isn’t our primary responsibility.”

“That’s the theory of your capitalist countries. Enterprises in our socialist country must bear social responsibilities. Many companies in our country are operating at a loss; why? Because those companies are related to the people’s basic needs of food, clothing, housing, and transportation infrastructure. Even if they lose a lot of money every year, they must operate. Your capitalist countries definitely wouldn’t do this. Businesses that lose money won’t be done, and businesses that lose money must be made profitable. This is Dragon Country; don’t use your set on us. Baidu Group is a Dragon Country company and should follow the rules of our country,” Yang Chen retorted.

Lucas was silent for a moment and then said: “Then I don’t care. We invested in Baidu Group to make money; otherwise, why would we invest? We’re the major shareholder, and the company must adopt our opinions.”

Other shareholders and executives didn’t speak, including Director Li; they just watched Yang Chen and DFJ’s representative argue.

Yang Chen said with a smile: “Mr. Lucas, I don’t want to say things too harshly. Give you face, you have to take it. If you don’t want face, I wouldn’t be sitting here wasting my time talking to you.”

Lucas was furious, and his anger was evident on the screen.

Director Li quickly interjected: “Speak nicely; don’t get angry. We’re all on the same side; there’s no need to be like this.”

“What do I have in common with him? Director Li, don’t talk nonsense. Lucas, I need you to give me a word now: do you agree to temporarily give up launching Cabbage Express, or do you disagree?”

“I can tell you very definitely: I disagree! We’re here to make money, and no one can stop us from making money legally!” Lucas said angrily.

Yang Chen said with a smile: “Well! What you said is absolutely right; making money must be legal. If autonomous driving cars aren’t legal, then they can’t make money. According to netizens’ feedback, Cabbage Express cars often cause accidents where two cars face each other and block traffic. This is because people’s driving habits aren’t standardized, but Cabbage Express’s program is too rigid and standardized, resulting in multiple collisions. Legally speaking, the driver is primarily responsible for the non-standard driving, but in terms of reason and ethics, human rights are above all else. Cabbage Express has brought serious traffic hazards to the people of Beijing, and I’ll propose to the relevant departments to ban Cabbage Express from the road!”

As soon as this statement was made, the shareholders and executives began to chatter and discuss.

Director Li also quickly said: “President Yang, don’t do this. You see, you’ve invested so much money in our company; isn’t it also to make money? Why make everyone suffer heavy losses?”

“Haha… Director Li may have misunderstood. I’m not opposed to this technology; I’m just opposed to putting it out for commercial use now. And because it involves traffic safety and other issues, it shouldn’t be led by Baidu Group, which is a foreign capital-dominated company. A new company should be established, with the state holding absolute control, and Baidu and other investors dividing the remaining shares. This is responsible for the safety of 1.4 billion Dragon Country people. Moreover, this also involves national road and building information security and other issues. Who can rest assured to hand over this information to a company dominated by foreign capital? If the information is leaked, our country will have no secrets, and hostile forces can accurately control the data of each street. How terrible would that be? Director Li, do you think what I said is right?” Yang Chen said.

Director Li was silent.

Yang Chen said with a smile: “Before I came, I called the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Information, the Ministry of Transport, etc., and asked them to send representatives over. They’re in the lounge now. Director Li, please ask your secretary to invite them over.”

Everyone was shocked again. It seems that Yang Chen was well prepared and is determined to get this done today.