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Henry still wore that same indifferent expression.
"Anyway, according to my contract with you, the technology I independently provide belongs to me. Jointly developed technology— I take a share. If you want to dump everything on me, why would I have a problem with that?"
Tony Stark didn't hesitate for even a second. He immediately turned around and barked orders at everyone else.
"Recruit people. Expand the departments. Whatever this motherf— wants, give it to him as much as possible."
People often said that this genius was a capitalist first and a scientist second. Tony Stark knew exactly where the profits lay—there was no way he'd just hand everything over to someone else, especially not to an annoying bastard.
If there hadn't been hidden objectives involved, Tony would never have signed that employment contract in the first place—one that looked suspiciously like an unequal treaty.
Tony glanced at the i486 computer that was still grinding away without results and did a quick mental calculation. A doubt surfaced.
"If, like you said, future film-grade cameras need even higher resolution, that means much larger video files. Post-production would take even longer. With this kind of performance… even the latest top-tier computers wouldn't be that much better, would they?"
Henry explained,
"Technology has to be stockpiled ahead of time. And you haven't forgotten Moore's Law, right? Every eighteen months, computing power doubles. Who knows how fast computers will be by the time this whole system is finished?
"If we wait until off-the-shelf personal computers can already handle it easily, then there won't be any room left for us at all. If you only look at current consumer standards, this system shouldn't even be developed—it simply won't run. But if we wait until it can run smoothly, it'll already be too late."
Tony suddenly thought of something.
"You don't seriously use this turtle-slow junk at home, do you?"
Henry grinned.
"Yep, that's exactly what I use. But think about it—this system is meant to be commercialized, and this is Stark Pictures. I can't exactly start manufacturing custom computer components just for this, right?
"Unless Stark Industries didn't have a computer division at all, I wouldn't even consider that route. As for my home setup—it's just a toy that doesn't belong on a real stage."
Tony stroked his goatee as he spoke.
"Computers are the future. Stark Industries isn't abandoning them—I'm just shrinking the consumer PC business. Military computing equipment is still very much on the table.
"If what you need is something like Pixar's image-processing computers, then here's the question: without relying on Moore's Law, how do we simulate future computing power using current components, to support development?"
Henry replied smoothly,
"Use multi-core systems. Split large files into smaller chunks, let all cores process them simultaneously, then merge the results.
"As long as the software supports this, more CPUs and more memory directly translate into faster post-production."
An engineer who'd been listening nearby blurted out in surprise,
"You can do that?"
Henry nodded.
"This isn't film. With film, you cut here, splice there—one operation at a time. Even a crooked cut ruins everything. But digital video is just a bunch of zeros and ones.
"How the program divides and processes the data doesn't matter. Split it, scatter it, recombine it—so long as the final result is a playable video file, that's all that counts."
"Multi-core systems, huh." Tony rubbed his beard again, sounding almost smug.
"Most commercial motherboards now support dual CPUs.
"If more CPUs mean better parallel performance, how many are you planning? Four? Eight? Adding sockets isn't hard.
"But then the bridge chips need redesigning. Otherwise, how do you get all those CPUs working together? And if you go that far, forget expandable memory slots—just package more memory chips directly.
"At that point, most of the hardware is custom. Have you thought about how much something like that would cost to build? Could it even be sold as a product?"
Henry answered,
"If it's just for system development, we keep it in-house and count manufacturing costs as R&D expenses. Externally, we sell software as the primary product, hardware as a supplement.
"And these specialized computers wouldn't just be for us—we could rent them out. Independent films and small studios already work that way. Editing suites are rented when needed."
Tony glanced at the other executives. Even with his understanding of the film business, he still wanted confirmation.
"Is that workable?"
The equipment department head, who handled rentals and sales, replied,
"Mr. Stark, if we offer rentals, that's effectively declaring war on the entire film-based industry.
"If no one adopts the new equipment, there's no return on investment. Everything would be wasted."
Tony hummed thoughtfully, then looked at Henry.
"Then do it."
The executives erupted in protest.
"Mr. Stark, this can't—"
Tony cut them off sharply.
"If we followed your logic, we'd still be fighting with spears—no rifles, no aircraft, no artillery.
"Once the product exists, the market will choose what benefits it most. Unless we're crushed before that happens. And honestly? I'm curious—who exactly dares to challenge Stark?"
Under Tony's direction, Obadiah Stane had restructured Stark Industries into a military–industrial complex to secure Tony's inheritance.
During that process, Stark Industries abandoned many sectors. Some praised it as brilliant corporate reform; others still whispered about a prodigal heir burning through his inheritance.
Tony had no intention of expanding outside military tech recklessly—but in his eyes, Henry's film technology was essentially computer technology.
Software demanded matching hardware. Strictly speaking, that still fit within Tony's strategic goals.
Internal consolidation was nearly complete. Stark Industries now had a new structure and a new network of relationships.
It was time to bare its fangs.
A lion doesn't become king without defeating other lions.
Direct confrontation in the military sector risked angering rival generals—and alienating those who supported him. That was unnecessary risk.
But throwing his weight around in other fields? The military would only back him.
In Tony Stark's eyes, Henry's film technology was the perfect opportunity.
Let Stark Pictures take the hit. Even if it broke, Stark Industries itself would remain unharmed.
Besides—Tony was far more worried that the CEO he'd appointed might be seen as a nobody in certain circles.
Now that this guy had jumped out into the spotlight on his own, why wouldn't Tony pour gasoline on the fire?
High-performance computers, you say?
Perfect—that aligns with my interests too.
Build them.
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