Chapter 292: Sky-high Sponsorship Fees
This force is so immense, invisible and intangible, yet it can be truly felt.
Like before, even Apollo Technology’s astronauts, including Lin Ran, could only train at Jiuquan’s Astronaut Training Center.
Jiuquan is certainly good, but it still has a gap compared to Yanjing’s Astronaut Training Center.
Now that the gates of Yanjing Astronaut Center are open, it means that all resources of China Aerospace are fully accessible to Apollo Technology.
In August, Apollo Technology launched Burning One Modified twice in the same moon landing time window, carrying fuel tanks to the Lunar South Pole.
One successfully completed a soft landing, while the other failed to complete the maneuver and made an emergency crash landing ahead of schedule. Although it also achieved a soft landing, the landing area was not the destination.
A two-thirds success rate is already astonishing enough, but for manned spaceflight, it casts a shadow over the mission execution for Wei Xuhang and Li Cong.
After all, it’s not a problem if the fuel tank doesn’t land in the target area, but if the crew module can’t land in the target area, that’s the real issue—it would leave them without fuel to return to Earth.
“Xuhang, can you tell me more about your last mission?” Li Cong asked. They had shared two periods of life and training together: once now, and once before Lin Ran’s manned moon landing, when Li Cong and Li Guang participated in their training as representatives of China Aerospace.
Because of these shared experiences, the two had become quite familiar with each other.
Last time, Li Cong was very envious of Wei Xuhang. In his view, the other was undoubtedly the luckiest of the lucky ones—brushed off by Chinese Astronaut Selection, yet becoming an astronaut at a private aerospace agency, which truly had the capability to send astronauts into space.
Inside this private aerospace agency, he wasn’t originally slated for the mission, but the previous official astronauts were somehow worn out.
The benefits of that wearing out had continued all the way to now, and this moon mission was again for Wei Xuhang.
What heavenly luck.
Netizens joked that Wei Xuhang was Ding Laoye in the field of aerospace—ability unclear, but luck top-tier; you’re always there to pick up the scraps.
But this time, he could go to the Moon himself, so Li Cong not only wasn’t envious or jealous of Wei Xuhang’s good fortune; on the contrary, he hoped the other’s luck stat was maxed out to ensure they could go smoothly and return smoothly.
“What’s there to say? I was just waiting in the command module for the professor and PhD to return. There was no room to shine, and operations were entirely under the professor’s command. The professor’s commands were precise down to the timing, what to do, and precautions for each task—everything explained in exhaustive detail.
With the professor there, you couldn’t make a mistake even if you wanted to, unless you deliberately sabotaged things.” Wei Xuhang explained.
Li Cong asked, “Do you ever imagine yourself going to the Moon?”
Wei Xuhang nodded: “Of course. I’m well aware that with the professor’s ability, I’ll get a chance to go to the Moon sooner or later. And now the opportunity is right in front of us?”
Both harbored a longing for the Moon and anxiety about this mission.
“I’m already looking forward to what it feels like to race a car on the Moon,” Li Cong said.
The second fuel tank launched included storage tank structure differentiation: the vast majority was fossil fuel needed for the lunar module’s return, but a small portion carried fuel for the lunar rover.
Because the lunar rover that Li Cong and Wei Xuhang would ride on the Moon was a range-extended vehicle with solar charging panels.
Of course, the range extension here was just a concept. There’s no oxygen on the Moon, so the technical proposal couldn’t be like an Earth internal combustion engine burning oil for power generation.
Called range-extended, it was more accurately hydrogen and oxygen combustion power generation fuel cell technology.
It was just called range-extended to attract investment.
Anyway, if the sponsors were Ideal and AITO, then this car was range-extended power generation; if XPeng or NIO, then it was pure electric.
All about flexibility and mobility, depending on the sponsor.
Right, this sponsorship drive was the big one. According to Pony’s vision, at least 1 billion needed to be pulled from domestic new energy vehicle manufacturers.
Then, the manufacturers’ names would appear on the lunar rover’s logo and car emblem.
There are millions of new energy vehicles on Earth, but only this one has a chance to race on the Moon—rarity drives value.
“So romantic. Before, we could only see Americans racing on the Moon in magazines or videos. Didn’t expect we’d have the chance this time too,” Wei Xuhang said with a look of yearning.
In 1971, Apollo 15 astronauts conducted humanity’s first lunar rover drive on the Moon. They drove the four-wheeled lunar rover across craters and rocks for several kilometers on the rugged lunar surface.
When the lunar rover stopped at the edge of Elbow Crater, the mission console in Houston activated its television camera, transmitting very clear color images to Earth.
Television audiences could see astronauts selecting and collecting moon rock samples.
(This photo was taken during Apollo 15’s lunar surface mission. In the photo, astronaut David Scott rides the lunar rover back to the lunar module and collects rocks and soil near the Hadley-Apennine landing site.)
They drove for two hours, covering 8 kilometers, then returned to the lunar module.
In January 2019, China’s Chang’e-4 mission lunar rover was named Yutu-2, successfully landing on the far side of the Moon at 10:26 on January 3. The lander and rover then separated, beginning stationary detection and roving exploration.
This time, Wei Xuhang and Li Cong’s mission was more specific: they had to bring drilling equipment and a spectrometer to search for water ice at the edge of Shackleton Crater.
This was also the most important task of their trip.
“Everyone, please look. This is the lunar rover for our moon landing program. Wherever it says Apollo Technology, we can print your company’s logo.
The astronauts will showcase this lunar rover throughout the entire process after landing on the Moon.
You should all know that with Apollo Technology’s technical strength, our current moon landing frequency is once a year, and in the future, it will become once a month, even several times a month. This lunar rover will stay on the Moon, available for our astronauts to use.
Every live broadcast will fully showcase your company’s logo, achieving the best advertising effect.
If not for pursuing the most fitting advertising effect and making our own contribution to China’s New Energy Vehicle Industry, we wouldn’t limit this bid to new energy vehicle companies.
Even if the lunar rover fails, we’ll transport components from the Moon for replacement, doing our utmost to ensure the lunar rover’s service life and your company’s brand promotion effect.”
This investment meeting was personally hosted by Pony, so the ones who came were the bosses of each new energy vehicle manufacturer.
Pony introduced the technical details of Apollo Technology’s lunar rover, including the range-extended and pure electric joke, eliciting laughter and applause from the bosses below.
Everyone was very accommodating.
For them, Apollo Aerospace’s lunar rover display spot would definitely have a far better effect than countless airport billboards combined.
Lunar rover with our company’s logo—for domestic new energy vehicles aiming high-end, priced at two or three hundred thousand each—what could more directly embody the brand’s premium, grand, and upscale image?
Obviously none.
One of a kind globally.
NIO’s General Manager Li was in his usual public suit and tie attire. He stared at the lunar rover on the PPT, lightly tapping his fingers, thinking: “NIO’s brand represents the future. Putting our logo on the lunar rover would absolutely ignite young people’s enthusiasm.”
In his view, this was not just sponsorship, but an opportunity for NIO to reach the universe.
“General Manager Ma, I have a question,” NIO Li raised his hand.
Pony politely said: “Please go ahead.”
“General Manager Ma, you mentioned pure electric and range-extended earlier. NIO’s biggest feature is battery swapping. Is there any way to showcase that on your company’s lunar rover?
If not this time, I have a small request: could you give NIO a discount? For example, if we quote 1 billion, give us 5% off.”
Pony laughed: “Battery swapping might be tricky, but if you’re willing to pay, building a swapping station on the Moon isn’t impossible. After all, we’re a commercial aerospace agency—as long as the price is right, nothing’s off the table.”
NIO Li immediately said: “General Manager Ma, how much to build a swapping station on the Moon? We actually have that plan.”
Pony said: “I’ll have the tech team estimate the price when I get back and WeChat it to you.”
XPeng’s President He—he’s called He of XPeng, hence the car brand XPeng.
Without a doubt, among the manufacturers now, XPeng’s days were the toughest, but that didn’t mean he wanted to miss this opportunity. XPeng had done the most thorough preparation before coming.
He raised his hand and asked: “General Manager Ma, because after Apollo 15 moon landing, they sent a car to the Moon for the first time, and that lunar rover was jointly developed by Boeing and General Motors.
They took 17 months to complete delivery.
And the lunar rover concept dates back to the mid-1960s; by 1965, there was already a prototype.”
In 1965, von Braun tested the lunar jeep concept car, which Lin Ran had also driven in the 1960s.
XPeng continued: “What I want to ask is, in the future, is it possible for us to build the lunar rover according to Apollo Technology’s requirements, then have Apollo Technology send it up? That way, it would better showcase our automaker’s technical strength, and the advertising effect might be stronger than just printing a logo.”
Pony nodded: “Of course. Printing the logo is just this cooperation method. For the selected party this time, we’ll further discuss future cooperation methods.
If XPeng is selected, and XPeng wants to design and produce the lunar rover itself, that’s fine.
If NIO is selected, and General Manager Li wants to build a swapping station on the Moon, that’s also no problem.
We can negotiate the specific price slowly.
This time, we’re only discussing sponsorship fees for this lunar rover.”
The meeting room fell silent; the bosses present all knew inwardly that this competition would be extremely fierce.
Pony said directly: “Everyone, please briefly state in turn how your brands align with aerospace goals and any additional support plans.”
The bosses exchanged glances, tension of competition filling the air.
BYD’s President Wang spoke first: “BYD’s battery technology has proven reliability in the global new energy vehicle market. In the future, we can customize high-density batteries for the lunar rover to handle low-temperature environments.
Additionally, we’re cooperating with aerospace enterprises to develop satellite batteries, highly relevant to moon mission technical needs.”
Subsequently, each manufacturer elaborated their advantages.
Like NIO’s brand core of innovation and user experience; their materials research team is exploring lightweight materials for lunar rover structure optimization.
XPeng’s AI algorithm can help the lunar rover avoid obstacles in shadowed regions, reducing astronauts’ workload, and they also cooperate with satellite image processing teams, with technology directly applicable to lunar topography analysis.
Ideal’s energy management technology ensures efficient lunar rover operation in extreme environments. Their system has optimized battery and generator synergy on Earth, crucial for the lunar rover’s long range—though they lack direct aerospace projects, their technical concept is highly versatile.
Xiaomi’s car isn’t out yet; they just outlined their concept.
Huawei doesn’t make cars, but AITO came—not President Yu personally, so less confidence in their pitch.
Pony nodded: “Good. Last question: how will your brand boost public interest in the moon landing mission?”
“BYD’s global fame can attract broad attention; we’ll promote the moon mission via ads and social media.”
“NIO’s user community is very active; we can launch online activities for young people to vote on lunar rover designs, igniting their aerospace passion.”
“XPeng will showcase the lunar rover’s smart tech via tech bloggers and live broadcast platforms, attracting tech enthusiasts.”
“Ideal will use documentaries and offline events to tell how the lunar rover uses energy management tech to explore water ice, conveying pragmatic innovation ideals.”
Pony said: “Good. Everyone, please write your sponsorship amount on the paper we provided and seal it in the envelope.
We’ll notify the selected party within three days.”
Three days later, as expected, Xiaomi won with a sky-high sponsorship of 2 billion.
This was mainly because Apollo Technology required 50% upfront payment, with the remaining 50% after the moon landing.
Among the new energy vehicle manufacturers present, everyone had tough years with annual losses. Take NIO: 4 billion in yearly marketing expenses—where to squeeze out money for Apollo Technology sponsorship?
AITO and Ideal had relatively better financial situations, but targeting family customers, it was hard for them to commit to sponsoring a moon landing.
Xiaomi urgently needed to rebalance its corporate image after the public opinion frenzy over the Armstrong moon landing special edition.
Plus, Xiaomi’s upcoming SU7 and the Apollo moon landing lunar rover’s aggressive styling would easily create mutually reinforcing resonance effects at the brand promotion level.
Ultimately, Xiaomi went all-in to sponsor the lunar rover project.
“Thrilled to announce to everyone that Xiaomi Car has sponsored Apollo Technology’s lunar rover project. This means Xiaomi Car’s first car hasn’t raced on Earth yet, but it’s already speeding on the Moon!
This symbolizes our goal of the sea of stars while implying our car manufacturing has sufficient tech content.”
“This is the largest one-time ad sponsorship I’ve shelled out in all these years, and the most worthwhile one in my view!”
“Thrilled to cooperate with China’s top-tier technology companies and provide a small boost to our Moon Base!”
On the day the cooperation agreement was signed, Lei Zong posted three Weibo updates in a row to celebrate.
