Chapter 967: Price and Safety
Zhou Jiangping and several Lehui professionals stared at the design drawings on Chen Mo’s computer screen, utterly dumbfounded.
Because… what these drawings depicted was a device that this world had theorized about for many years but never actually developed: a VR gaming pod utilizing neural interface technology.
Existing VR technology had already reached a bottleneck. It was like trying to improve a steam engine to match the efficiency of an internal combustion engine—no matter how much you tweaked it, you couldn’t bridge that gap. Further improvements to current VR tech could only go so far: enhancing image resolution, adding more character animations, or updating haptic devices to make sensory feedback feel more realistic…
But no matter how much you upgraded, you could never reach the level of neural interface.
Now, the brand-new VR gaming pod design that Chen Mo had presented was equivalent to the leap from steam engines to internal combustion engines. It fundamentally changed the working principle of VR gaming pods, essentially ushering in a new era of VR gaming.
Zhou Jiangping suppressed his excitement and asked, “President Chen, setting aside the cost for now, I want to ask first… can this thing actually work?”
Chen Mo: “==”
“Ahem.” Zhou Jiangping coughed twice. “President Chen, don’t rush me. Let me take a closer look at these drawings.”
Chen Mo sat down on the nearby sofa. “No problem, take your time.”
Zhou Jiangping and a few Lehui technical staff gathered around the computer screen, carefully examining the entire design—the components, principles, and everything else about this new VR gaming pod.
After about half an hour, Zhou Jiangping sat down on the sofa nearby, still processing what he had seen.
Chen Mo asked, “What do you think?”
Zhou Jiangping was clearly excited inside, but he maintained his composure. “If we’re just talking about manufacturing, it’s doable! But it’s expensive. Several components use cutting-edge technology, like neural connection systems and life safety systems. The neural connection tech, in particular, is basically at the highest level currently achievable.”
“However, there’s one issue. At this stage, we can manufacture the electrodes you need for monitoring, guiding, and inputting brain signals. But… how do we decode the collected brain signals? Current technology hasn’t figured that out yet. And for this device, without a corresponding decoding program, even if we collect the brain signals, how do we convert them into program signals to transmit to the host? And how do we transmit the host’s signals back to the player?”
Chen Mo smiled. “Don’t worry about that. I have the decoding program too. I’ve already filed patent applications for both the hardware and software with the Game Committee. Right now, I’m thinking of making a prototype first and getting a price estimate.”
Zhou Jiangping was still a bit skeptical, but seeing Chen Mo so confident, he was about seventy to eighty percent convinced.
“As for the manufacturing cost, it should be around 300,000 to 400,000 per unit. If we cut costs, we might get it down to 250,000 at the lowest. That’s still much more expensive than most existing VR gaming pods. But I don’t think price is a big issue—this thing represents the future direction of development. Besides, there are plenty of rich people in this world.”
Chen Mo pondered. “Hmm, 300,000…”
That price point was unexpectedly high.
Existing VR gaming pods cost between 50,000 and 200,000, and even those couldn’t be widely popularized. A new pod starting at 250,000 was even more niche. Of course, “wide popularization” meant getting this thing into every household and into the hands of the working class. If you only considered the wealthy, the potential market was still substantial. In other words, at this stage, it could only be a toy for the rich, and it couldn’t even fully replace the old VR gaming pods.
Chen Mo thought for a moment. “In that case, we won’t lower the price. We’ll go the high-end route. For rich people, 250,000 and 300,000 aren’t that different anyway.”
Zhou Jiangping nodded. “That’s what I was thinking. This thing can’t be sold at a dirt-cheap price. For the working class, even saving 20,000 or 30,000 still makes it too expensive. For now, we can only target the high-end market. But since this is a product of cutting-edge technology and a monopoly, no matter how we sell it, it’s pure profit.”
Chen Mo tapped the table lightly. “We can handle this level of hardware, right?”
Zhou Jiangping nodded. “Yes. This VR gaming pod is essentially bringing our frontier technology into practical use ahead of schedule—a small leap forward. From a hardware perspective, since we can build it, we can certainly repair it. However…”
Zhou Jiangping paused and then asked, “I’m worried about the risks. This new VR gaming pod directly transmits information to and from the player’s brain and nerves. If an accident happens, could it cause brain damage?”
Chen Mo explained, “The Game Committee has already arranged for experts and technicians to assess the safety of this device. If it doesn’t pass, we obviously can’t sell it. But it should be fine. This device isn’t invasive—there’s no need for something like ‘plugging a tube into the back of the head.’ The safety level is relatively high.”
“The human brain has strong protective mechanisms. The neural interface connection occurs while the player is in a semi-hypnotic state. The gaming pod itself also monitors the data being transmitted to the player and the player’s physical condition in real time. If anything abnormal happens, it will immediately disconnect the consciousness link. For players, the worst they’ll experience is something like a nightmare, and even that would be milder than the shock of a real nightmare.”
“The Game Committee will arrange corresponding clinical trials to estimate the maximum shock value of this device. But we don’t need to worry about that—we don’t have the authority anyway.”
Zhou Jiangping nodded. “Alright, it seems I was overthinking it. I’ll arrange for a prototype to be made right away. It should be quick.”
Chen Mo seemed to think of something else. “Oh, and take a good look at the additional features too, like the life support system and the video signal output system for live streaming. There might be specialized versions for specific groups or government departments, so we need to plan ahead.”
Zhou Jiangping nodded. “Got it, no problem.”
…
Zhou Jiangping left cheerfully. To him, even if this thing was expensive, so what? There would always be rich people willing to buy it. Especially wealthy individuals who were old, frail, or plagued by illness—this device was like a second life to them. There was no way it wouldn’t sell.
Chen Mo’s thoughts were simpler: once he unlocked a few more tech points later, the price would drop. For now, he’d sell a batch to fleece the rich and let the players in this world get used to it. Mass production could come later.
Of course, it wasn’t really a rip-off. After all… early adopters get early enjoyment.
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