How Do You Raise $100 Billion?
It was recently reported that Sam Altman is trying to raise $7 trillion for a new chip company to compete with Nvidia.
Microsoft and Apple — the largest companies in the world — are each worth around $3 trillion on a good day.
$7 trillion is an unimaginable sum by any measure, and everyone understands there is virtually no chance of it happening.
Sam Altman is no fool. But he has clearly gained two things from this move — which were probably the goal all along:
1. Everyone is talking about him, and that's good.
When you're looking for investment, the more people who know about it, the greater the chance it reaches the right investor's ears. The rumor mill surrounding the story, and the lengthy articles explaining just how far-fetched the idea is, only strengthen his presence in the capital markets as a relevant investment target.
2. This is how you negotiate.
When you want to raise $100 billion, talk about a trillion.
Sure, everyone will explain that a trillion dollars is completely detached from reality — but suddenly $100 billion starts to look far more reasonable and rational, even though it's still an outrageous sum.
What can we learn from him?
Sometimes being in the public consciousness is valuable, even when the context isn't entirely positive. A million people might think we're out of touch with reality, but all it takes is one person who thinks differently.
Second — whatever goal we set for ourselves, the higher we aim, the further we'll go. If we plan to finish a course in a month, we'll finish it in two. If we plan to finish it in six months, we'll finish it in a year.
This holds true in business negotiations, whether we're buying or selling.
It holds true for almost any goal we aspire to.
Will the move prove itself for Sam Altman?
It will be interesting to see.
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