I received an unexpected gift—shares in SpaceX from Musk himself.
Right now, Musk and his team are roughing it in a shabby factory, enduring hardship. But if they stick it out to the end, they'll hit the jackpot with stock options.
Of course, I would be receiving an even bigger jackpot than them.
And since there were still more gifts waiting for me in the United States, I headed to Silicon Valley.
SAVE Investment Company owned several buildings in Silicon Valley, and I visited one of them.
"Has everyone been doing well?"
"Vice Chairman Kim! You're here!"
"Mr. Kim! What brings you here without notice?"
I was greeted warmly.
It was CEO Kim Ik-soo of Fantasy TV, along with Hurley and Steve Chen.
They were working together to develop a new video platform.
"I heard the video platform development is almost done, so I came by to check it out."
"It really is nearly complete. We took the alpha version created by Taewoo Group and added several features to build a fully functional video platform. We're planning to launch it in January next year. Right now, we're working on fixing bugs."
Kim Ik-soo answered with a bright expression.
Ah, right—he's a team leader now, isn't he?
He had joined us in Silicon Valley, bringing many of Fantasy TV's developers with him. Hurley and Steve, the creators of the legendary platform YouTube, were also part of the team.
"You sound very proud. Mind if I take a quick look?"
"Of course! I was hoping to show it to you!"
Team Leader Kim Ik-soo presented the beta version of the video platform.
It had clearly added many more features compared to the alpha version.
It was nearly indistinguishable from YouTube—the one I had used before my regression—and in terms of intuitiveness, it even seemed better.
"It looks quite impressive."
"We focused on keeping the UI as simple as possible, and we implemented multiple algorithms to deliver personalized videos."
"So, have you settled on a name?"
"We've narrowed it down to a few candidates. Would you be willing to choose one for us, Vice Chairman?"
Team Leader Kim Ik-soo guided me over to a whiteboard.
On it, four large name candidates were written boldly:
[MyTube, YouTube, WeTube, WorldTV, OneTV]
As expected, one familiar name stood out.
It was the same name that had dominated the video platform world before my regression.
But I didn't insist on choosing that name—instead, I left the final decision to the development team.
"These are all great names. I think any one of them would work well."
"In that case, since you're here, Vice Chairman, how about we have all the staff vote and decide?"
"That's a great idea. I get a vote too, right?"
"We could give you ten if you want!"
"I couldn't do that. Just one vote for me."
The voting turned into a kind of party.
So I ordered a catering service to the office. Just for today, everyone put their work aside to enjoy good food and drinks, laughing and chatting freely.
"Everyone full? Then let's begin the long-awaited vote!"
Mark climbed onto a desk, drawing everyone's attention.
Each person received a ballot and wrote down one name out of the five candidates before placing it into the ballot box.
Maybe I should turn things up a notch?
These kinds of votes get even more exciting when there's something at stake.
"I'm putting up a $50,000 prize! Whichever name wins, the people who voted for it will split the prize equally!"
[Wow! If it works out, that's more than $2,000 per person!]
[Can we vote again?]
[No way! One vote per person—that's the rule!]
The excitement in the room spiked.
Meanwhile, the voting ended and the counting began.
CEO Kim Ik-soo took the lead, pulling out the ballots one by one and announcing them.
"One vote for WeTube! And this one says WorldTV!"
With only 50 staff members, the counting went quickly.
And with just a one-vote difference, the new name for the video platform was decided.
"With 19 votes, the winner is WeTube! From now on, the name of the video platform we've built will be WeTube. Everyone, give it up!"
[Wooooooo!]
While everyone laughed and clapped with joy…
All I could do was force an awkward smile.
That was because the runner-up, with 18 votes, was YouTube.
"Everyone, please continue enjoying the party. Team leaders, let's head to the meeting room for a moment."
"We'll go right away."
Now that the name was decided, it was time to fine-tune the details.
I explained the areas that developers were typically weakest in—promotion and planning.
"Starting in January next year, we'll launch a full-scale promotional campaign for WeTube . We'll begin simultaneously in the U.S., Korea, and all across Europe through TV, radio, newspapers, portals, and online communities."
"Wouldn't that kind of promotion be prohibitively expensive?"
"As the person holding the largest stake, it's only right that I handle that. Don't worry about the cost. All promotional expenses will be covered by Taewoo Group and myself. Besides, it won't be as expensive as it sounds. Our partner companies have agreed to promote it for free."
WeTube had a complex shareholding structure.
Naturally, I held the largest stake. The rest was divided among tech giants like Google, Apple, and Amazon.
These major IT firms each held a portion of the shares, and they were also obligated to participate in promotion.
"As long as the promotion is done right, I'm confident this will be a guaranteed success."
"I'll make sure the promotion is aggressive enough that no one can say we failed due to lack of exposure. In fact, WeTube will come pre-installed on all upcoming Apple smartphones. Isn't that the most powerful promotion possible?"
It truly was top-tier promotion.
At the moment, Apple's iPhones held over half of the smartphone market share.
Even though their global share of all mobile phones wasn't quite 20%, WeTube was targeting smartphone users specifically, so there was no need to worry.
"If WeTube is installed as a default app on Apple devices, the user base will explode almost overnight!"
"Google and Amazon will also promote WeTube actively. So beyond smartphones, PC users will also have plenty of opportunities to encounter the platform."
"No one will ever be able to say we failed because of poor marketing."
"And Facebook will also be heavily promoting it."
"Facebook too? Wow...!"
What kind of product could ever receive this level of promotional firepower?
It was possible because it was WeTube—and because I held the largest stake in WeTube.
"So don't worry about the promotion. Just focus on making the platform as polished and complete as possible."
"We'll root out every single bug before launch!"
The team leaders responded with firm determination.
I trusted them—and with that, I returned to Korea.
I welcomed the New Year of 2005 aboard the plane returning to Korea.
As soon as I landed at Incheon Airport, dozens of security personnel were waiting for me, and the head of the planning office had come to greet me personally.
"Did your business trip to the U.S. go well?"
"I'd say I achieved everything I set out to accomplish."
"I'm glad to hear the trip was successful. Let me take you home—Chairman is waiting for you at the estate."
On the way home, I was briefed by the planning director on the reports I had missed.
There were no major incidents, and the performance of most of Taewoo Group's affiliates was trending upward.
By the time I had finished listening to the updates, we had arrived at the estate. As I stepped inside, my grandfather greeted me with open arms.
"You've had quite the journey. You must be tired."
"You don't usually greet me so warmly just for a U.S. trip. I'm guessing there's something you want to tell me?"
His smile practically reached the sky.
It was clear he had resolved a major issue while I was away.
"We've finally cleared the issue with the new headquarters site! Both the government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government have approved the permits."
"It sounds like you're the one who did all the hard work. Congratulations! Which site received approval?"
"I pushed hard for the KEPCO site, but we couldn't secure it. In the end, we got the permits for the Charlotte Group site."
Just as I expected.
Thanks to twenty years of groundwork by the Charlotte Group, obtaining permits for that site had become much easier.
Discussions for the KEPCO land had only just begun, so securing approval would have taken far more effort and time.
"The Charlotte site isn't small by any means. What matters most is that we can finally begin construction on the new headquarters. We had hoped to break ground in 2004, but it's just been slightly delayed."
"It worked out for the better. Starting 2005 with such good news is a blessing."
"Are you planning to move forward with the initial design draft prepared by Taewoo Construction?"
To secure the permit, Taewoo Construction had prepared dozens of draft proposals.
Each one featured a skyscraper over 100 stories tall—designs that looked quite different from the building Charlotte Group had eventually built in my previous life.
"That's probably what we'll go with. It'll be a massive project, with construction costs exceeding 3 trillion won."
"It'll take at least five years to complete, from groundbreaking to opening."
"Even if we have all of Taewoo Construction's personnel working on it to speed things up, we can't rush quality. It'll take time."
The smile never left my grandfather's face.
Well, it made sense—Taewoo Group, the number one conglomerate in the country, had been operating out of a lacklustre headquarters.
"Are you really that happy?"
"This is the happiest day of my life since the day you were born. I'm planning to practically live at the construction site and oversee everything myself. So you'll have to take charge of this year's executive board meetings."
"I don't mind hosting the executive meetings, but are you sure it's okay for you to be at a construction site at your age?"
"If a man spends too much time in bed or on a chair, he just gets older faster. It's being in a lively place that keeps both the body and mind young."
With him this happy, how could I possibly stop him?
All I could do was ensure safety measures were thoroughly in place.
"If you're going to be out at the construction site, that means my workload is about to multiply."
"How is that my fault? Isn't it because you keep launching new ventures?"
"I can't just stop expanding into new businesses just because I want less work."
"So, what kind of business are you planning to start this year? Are you going to keep riding the IT wave?"
For the first time, he asked with a serious expression.
Since this was a question about the future direction of Taewoo Group, I sat up straight and responded carefully.
"As I always say, for Taewoo Group to continue growing, we need to shift from a manufacturing-centred business to a service-centred business."
"But we can't just abandon manufacturing completely. Our core businesses, like automobiles and electronics, are all built on manufacturing. It's the heart of Taewoo Group."
"I'm not saying we should abandon it. We should still do manufacturing—but we should focus on high-value-added manufacturing."
"Like smartphones?"
"In the auto industry, electric vehicles will eventually play the same role as smartphones."
Grandfather nodded in agreement.
He had taken an interest in electric vehicles even before I did, so he wasn't one to question their potential.
"Alright, lead Taewoo Group in the direction you see fit. I'll take a step back now and offer my support from behind."
"It's still too soon for you to step back. Just a little longer—please help me out."
"This rascal! Trying to squeeze every last drop of energy from his grandfather. Fine, I'll help— with the spirit of Prime Minister Hwang Hui, no less!"
It was the best start I could have asked for in 2005.
And 2005 would only bring even more good news.