Reality Bytes: A Highflying Tech Entrepreneur Crashes Back To Earth (wsj.com) 64
An anonymous reader shares a WSJ article: Entrepreneur Jia Yueting likes to say that Apple is outdated, China's big technology companies are innovation-killing monopolies and his company, LeEco, is the real industry disrupter. That swagger served Mr. Jia in building an empire that sprawled across seven industries, from online video content to smartphones to electric cars. By having the ambition to take on Apple, Tesla and Netflix all at once, Mr. Jia seemed to embody the boundless promise of the huge China market. And investors responded favorably. Deal makers like HNA Capital and Legend Holdings bought in, as did the city government of tech hub Shenzhen, as well as movie director Zhang Yimou and other celebrities. British sports car maker Aston Martin joined up to develop electric vehicles. The U.S. state of Nevada promised $200 million in incentives for Mr. Jia's electric car venture, Faraday Futures, to build a $1 billion plant there. And LeEco unveiled a $2 billion deal to buy U.S. TV-maker Vizio. Now, most of those deals are dead or struggling and Mr. Jia's dreams are fading away due to a cash crunch and worried creditors (could be paywalled). On Thursday he resigned as chairman of a listed unit of LeEco, Leshi Internet Information & Technology, though he will remain the chairman of the holding company. That move comes after a Shanghai court last week -- at the behest of China Merchants Bank -- froze $181 million worth of his assets and $2 billion in shares over a missed interest payment.
Re: (Score:1, Funny)
It's called "a metaphor".
Get a grip.
And no, that's not an instruction for you to grab yourself with one hand.
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
One of the classic signs that you're dealing with someone with Aspergers is their inability to "get" things like metaphors or irony. It's not that they're stupid, it's simply that they are wired to see things in very black and white terms, and to tend to take things very literally.
Re: (Score:2)
The real kicker is that the AC complaining about there not being a literal crash to Earth was making a joke.
If you can't see that (especially with the clickbait and "american english" references) you're the asspie.
Re: Bait headline (Score:1)
I wondered if he had crashed too. Got an aspergers diagnose as well. Don't see a problem with the request and agree and wish I had mod-points.
Re: (Score:2)
You can have a rump steak, so why not?
Re: (Score:2)
clickbait
So... wait... are you saying that you actually did think that he was launched into outer space and his spaceship crashed and that's what the article was about and that's why you clicked through it? Yes, I can see where American English slang would ruin your day most days.
Re: Bait headline (Score:1)
Rich Tesla competing tech entrepreneur crashed. .. is it all that illogical to wonder whatever from the air or not?
Re: (Score:2)
Yes it is illogical because "came crashing down to earth" in various forms is a very common metaphor. I am very surprised you haven't encountered it before.
Re: (Score:1)
Yes it is illogical because "came crashing down to earth" in various forms is a very common metaphor. I am very surprised you haven't encountered it before.
I'm fine with both.
Re:Bait headline - you're a dumbass (Score:2)
"american english slang"
Obviously you've never heard of the BRITISH sci-fi flick The Man Who Fell To Earth which although written by American Walter Tevis, was adapted into a film by Nicolas Roeg & Paul Mayersberg and the title role was played by David Bowie.
Guess which country all three grew up in. Hint: NOT the USofA
Re:Clickbait (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Isn't it up to the INS to decide?
Re: (Score:1)
What exactly is clickbait? His company is imploding despite being overhyped and the next Jesus corporation.
Re: (Score:1)
Fear fuels the Wall Industrial Complex.
Aston Martin? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Never mind Aston Martin, what happened to Ferguson Motors?
Re: (Score:2)
k6mfw kept referring to Aston Martin as AM.
Re: (Score:2)
I think that's Jaguar.
Re: (Score:2)
They all got sold...
Rolls Royce got sold to BMW. They also had Rover group, including Mini and Land Rover, but have since sold off Land Rover. Bentley split off from Rolls Royce to Audi. Sterling (anyone remember them?) got sold many years ago to Honda. Aston Martin, and Jaguar got sold to Ford, though they've since divested. Vauxhall was always a part of GM to me, though recently sold to Peugot-Citroen. Lotus a part of Chinese Geely (which also owns Volvo)
Morgan, Caterham, AC (yay, AC ace) and McLare
Re: (Score:2)
What happened? Thatcher happened.
While in France or Germany their governments intervened to get the companies over the hump, saving jobs in the process, and the companies recovered, in the UK they just let everyone fail and get purchased.
Re: (Score:2)
WTF does he has to do with this?
Outside of That '70s show, what's he done? A few shitty movies and an abortion of an attempt to supplant Charlie Sheen on his awful show?
Re: (Score:2)
Britain at one point didn't have any independent car manufacturers of its own, as Aston Martin was acquired by Ford in 1991. However, Ford divested it and it became an independent British company again in 2007.
Yes, it did. (Score:2)
Morgan has been independent since it was founded in 1909.
Re: (Score:2)
Morgan don't manufacture. They craft, and they do it lovingly in the traditional, time-honoured way.
Are they up to a dozen per week yet?
Re: (Score:2)
Yes, I should have said mass-producer of automobiles. Aston Martin is over ten times the size of Morgan. According to Morgan, they current make "over 1300" a year, which would work out to over 25 a week.
Obvious (Score:3)
Defintely clickbait (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
As if anyone reads the article any more, you're funny
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I'm so /., I only read posts from APK.
Re: Defintely clickbait (Score:1)
I'm so /. I'm only here to up vote GNAA posts.
Re: (Score:2)
Your hosts file must be awesome.
Re: (Score:3)
I wouldn't be surprised. There are a number of sites suspiciously submitted by anonymous users e.g.:
Re: (Score:2)
There is an article that is probably more direct, on People's Daily [people.cn] about this matter.
Re: (Score:1)
Or the more plausible option: his business was overhyped and simply crash and burned due to excessive burn rates without the revenue to back it up.
The Unicorns are falling! The Unicorns are falling (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I highly doubt you've eaten "inland Chinese food" or even classic Asian food - it's pretty meager on the farms, you may get chicken feet in your broth soup but that will be the extent of the meat. Dumplings aren't stuffed with meat but rather tough and doughy and dry out in a matter of hours. Half of Chinese "traditional" food would be too spicy for most of us and a lot of it you wouldn't recognize. A lot of soybean and cucumber though.
Muslims don't really have a cuisine, they only have restrictions althoug