Chapter 250
Sebastian sat down and, with the air of someone who belonged in every room, started chatting effortlessly with the clients.
He said, “Mr. Sullivan from Sky Spark Technologies, if I’m not mistaken? I’ve long heard of your reputation. Your team’s work in mobile optimization is truly impressive.”
The CEO of SkySpark Technologies, Victor Sullivan, was a down-to-earth man who dedicated his entire career to the tech field. Hearing Sebastian’s compliment, Victor gave a modest smile. “Mr. Robinson, you’re too kind. Compared to the international high-tech projects you’re handling, our tech doesn’t even come close. I doubt it’d meet your standards.”
James said with a smile, “I wouldn’t say that. Everyone has a smartphone these days, and the biggest complaint about domestic systems is how they tend to lag over time. Your work might not sound flashy, but it tackles a real issue that people face every day.”
“Exactly,” Sebastian agreed, nodding for the waiter to open a bottle of wine. “Most folks still don’t have the luxury of upgrading their phones on a whim. So optimization matters more than it seems.”
Sitting beside Lila, Abigail listened as the two of them chatted so smoothly with the clients, thinking, “I feel like such a fifth wheel here.”
Lila was a natural at social graces. As soon as the waiter opened the bottle of wine, Lila immediately took it and began pouring for the clients seated around her, earning courteous smiles from them.
Victor leaned toward Sebastian, diving into the technical details. “This collaboration with Gibson Group is also focused on mobile optimization. We’re shifting that part of the business over to Gibson Group. What we’re really hoping for is help with gaming performance. You know how—young people practically live on mobile games these days, but optimization’s become a serious issue for us.”
Sebastian listened attentively. Lila sat to the side, her eyes crinkling with quiet delight as she glanced at Abigail. Honestly, when Wyatt negotiated with them, their attitude was never this agreeable. After all, it was Gibson Group that was seeking their cooperation, so their condescending attitude was inevitable. These partnerships hadn’t come easily—Wyatt had fought hard for every one of them. Now, with Gibson Group tangled in scandals, most of the clients who showed up tonight weren’t here to discuss business. They came to size Abigail up, say their piece, and pull the plug on the deals.
Lila had seen that coming from the start. But even so, she chose to give Abigail a chance. Sure, Abigail was new, young, inexperienced, and freshly appointed as CEO. But Lila had been trained by Wyatt specifically to support her.
Sebastian said to Victor, “Newer games are pushing phones harder than ever. They overheat constantly, and optimization alone can’t solve that. At the root of it, it’s a hardware issue.”
Victor let out a sigh, “You’re right. Players want high-end graphics now, but every title on the market is chasing visual quality. It’s made our jobs on the optimization side way harder than it used to be.”
Sebastian suggested, “Let’s start working together first, then we can sort out any issues as we go.”
James smiled and said, “Ms. Gibson here really knows her stuff in this field.”
“Ms. Gibson, do you really know your stuff?” another client asked Abigail curiously.
Abigail nodded. “I know a thing or two, Mr. Hendix. Your company specializes in smart home systems, right? I’ve reviewed your company—you mainly focus on robotic vacuum cleaners, and now you’re aiming to develop smarter ones.”
“Exactly,” Eric Hendrix said with a troubled expression. “Our customers keep telling us our smart robots just aren’t smart enough. Honestly, it’s been a headache for us for quite a while.”
With Sebastian and James present, everyone was finally able to negotiate in good faith.
Abigail cut straight to the core. “Your smart robots’ chips need upgrading. They’re too outdated to handle today’s smarter AI systems.”
Eric responded immediately, “High-end chips cost more. Raise the price, and people stop buying.”
Abigail replied, “I’ll look into it thoroughly when I get back.”
The dinner went smoothly and pleasantly. Without bringing up any other matters, they somehow ended up continuing their partnership with Gibson Group.
After dinner, Abigail instructed Lila to drive the family cat home, while she herself went with Sebastian and James to Sebastian’s place.
“I knew they didn’t come today to talk partnership. They just wanted to end things with Gibson Group face-to-face. I spent the whole afternoon racking my brain, trying to figure out how to convince them. Turns out, all it took was you two showing up.” Abigail felt happy, but also a little hollow inside, because she knew exactly how hard Wyatt had worked to secure those deals. Back then, the company had been bleeding money for years. Anyone could look up the financial reports and see the red.