AN: Here you go, 3rd chapter. I better see some more powerstones today.
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Noah chuckled while switching to another diagram. "We've thought about that. Titan Control Center will handle GPU settings, ray-tracing configuration, processor modes, cooling profiles, storage health, driver updates, and game optimization without forcing normal consumers through twelve different utilities."
Rachel nodded once. "Good. The consumer shouldn't need an engineering degree after buying an expensive computer."
Maya returned the screen to the complete ecosystem.
MICROSOFT WINDOWS CERTIFIED TITAN PLATFORM
Operating-system and software compatibility.
She looked around the room before adding, "That gives us a complete PC path without forcing customers into a closed machine. They can buy one Titan component, several Titan components, or an entire certified system."
Alex leaned forward with clear approval. "That's exactly what I want. Enthusiasts should be able to build their own machines, upgrade slowly, mix components where compatibility allows, and still use Windows normally. We win because our hardware is better, rather than because we trapped everybody inside some weird proprietary box."
Rachel advanced the financial projections. "That distinction also helps legally. We're partnering with Intel instead of trying to strangle the CPU market, and we're working directly with Microsoft rather than using software incompatibility as a weapon. Other manufacturers can still build Windows computers. Other graphics companies can still ship products. Consumers can still choose them."
Marcus looked toward the performance chart and gave a quiet laugh. "They can choose them, although after seeing these numbers, I'm not sure why many people would."
Rachel's expression sharpened slightly. "That's their problem, which is exactly where I want it."
The screen changed toward Titan's display division.
TITAN VISION
Elias nodded toward the display section. "That solves another major problem because the hardware is going to outrun almost every normal television and monitor currently sitting in people's homes."
Rachel expanded the two flagship products.
Titan Vision 32
32-inch native 4K computer display.
Titan Cinema 46
46-inch native 4K television.
Alex studied the mockups before smiling. "That line is staying in my presentation. We built a machine powerful enough to make existing televisions the bottleneck, so we fixed the television too."
Marcus laughed from the opposite side of the table. "You're going to make every electronics manufacturer hate Titan in a single evening."
Alex looked entirely comfortable with that possibility. "Efficiency matters when you're collecting enemies."
Rachel moved the presentation toward the console.
Its working name appeared beneath a dark silhouette.
TITAN NOVA
Elias sat straighter as the room's attention shifted toward him. "The Nova engineering chassis is stable. Controller latency is below our original target, thermal behavior remains inside safe limits, and our software compatibility layer is much further along than I expected at this stage."
Alex rested one forearm against the table. "What processor are we putting inside the console?"
Elias brought up the architecture map. "A custom Apex-derived CPU designed with Intel specifically for Nova. It shares enough architectural principles with the desktop platform that game developers can move code between PC and console without rebuilding everything from the ground up."
Noah immediately added, "That shared environment matters enormously. Titan Engine, our compiler tools, shader pipeline, physics libraries, and development SDK will target Nova and Windows PCs through the same general toolchain."
Travis leaned forward as the implication became obvious. "Which means Mass Effect can ship on Titan Nova and Titan-certified Windows PCs without us maintaining completely separate development branches."
Noah nodded. "Exactly. Platform-specific optimization will still exist, although the underlying development environment remains close enough that porting becomes dramatically easier."
Alex smiled as he looked toward Rachel. "That also means developers have fewer excuses for terrible PC ports."
Rachel gave him a calm look. "I'm sure somebody will still discover new excuses."
"Well, Xbox and PS are in for a massive surprise. Their consoles would look ancient. Haaa... I love crushing competition," Alex said with a sinister smile.
Elias brought the manufacturing calendar onto the main display. "The final industrial design should lock within three weeks. Component production can begin immediately afterward, and we can build inventory through May and June."
Alex tapped one finger against the table. "Give me the shipping date without corporate optimism."
Elias checked the supply forecast before answering. "July third is realistic if Intel begins custom Apex production in April and Microsoft finishes certification on schedule. We can accumulate enough launch inventory to avoid immediate shortages in our major markets."
Rachel glanced toward him approvingly. "I want purchase limits during launch month, identity checks on suspicious bulk orders, and agreements with major retailers preventing obvious warehouse-scale reselling."
Alex remembered the Maleficent merchandise disaster and smiled. "You're still emotionally damaged by fairy-horn scalpers."
Rachel looked toward him without amusement. "People buying fifty units so children can't find one at retail deserve every legal inconvenience I can arrange."
The next line appeared beneath the console date.
MASS EFFECT: JULY 3, 2009
Travis stared at it for several seconds before slowly exhaling. "You're tying the game directly to Nova launch day."
Alex met his eyes. "You wanted people to remember Mass Effect. They'll remember the first game that makes their expensive television feel outdated."
Travis smiled despite the pressure settling visibly across his shoulders. "Then I'm going to need every testing team we've got between now and June."
Alex nodded while pointing toward him. "You'll get them. Quality comes before schedule pride, so if something serious appears, tell me immediately and we'll fix it."
Rachel moved the timeline toward Titan's other studios. "Nebula Forge and Iron Lantern won't launch major titles beside Mass Effect. We don't need to bury our own flagship game beneath three internal releases. Both studios will reveal their projects after Titan World and release development footage throughout the summer."
She looked toward both studio directors. "Keep the stories separate from hardware advertising whenever possible. I want Titan's studios to feel like creative companies using advanced technology, rather than twenty-hour commercials disguised as video games."
Noah tapped the software roadmap before bringing the discussion back toward the ecosystem. "There's another issue we should settle before launch. If our development stack feels too Titan-specific, third-party studios might hesitate because they'll assume supporting our hardware traps them inside our platform."
Rachel answered while bringing up the licensing policy. "Then we don't trap them. Titan Ray API documentation will be public. Our development tools can export toward other supported systems where technically possible. Developers keep ownership of their games, and technical assistance won't require lifetime exclusivity."
Marcus raised his eyebrows. "That's unusually generous for a platform launch."
Rachel gave him a thin smile. "I don't need chains when performance does the persuasion for me. If developers release the same game elsewhere and the Titan version runs at higher resolution, better lighting, faster loading, and more stable performance, every comparison video becomes free advertising."
Alex laughed while glancing toward her. "That might be the most evil version of consumer-friendly policy I've ever heard."
Rachel's expression remained calm. "Friendly behavior becomes remarkably useful when your competitors can't match it."
The final market map appeared across the wall.
NVIDIA.
AMD.
Sony.
Microsoft.
Nintendo.
Intel.
Major PC manufacturers.
Component vendors.
Game publishers.
Retail chains.
VFX houses.
Research institutions.
Display manufacturers.
Rachel walked toward the screen and folded her arms. "Here's where everybody needs discipline. Intel and Microsoft Windows are strategic partners for this launch. We need Intel's manufacturing strength and processor ecosystem, and we need Microsoft's Windows platform because billions of dollars in software compatibility can't be rebuilt overnight."
Alex nodded while looking toward the Microsoft and Intel logos. "We compete where we compete and cooperate where cooperation makes everybody richer. I'm not stupid enough to start unnecessary wars just because Titan has good technology."
Rachel touched the tablet, and NVIDIA and AMD moved into a separate highlighted group. "Those two are different because they directly compete with Aegis. Even then, nobody publicly attacks them, celebrates their stock problems, or says Titan plans to destroy them."
Priya looked toward the performance projections. "Even when the launch effectively makes their current product roadmaps obsolete."
Rachel glanced toward her. "Especially in that situation. We publish benchmarks, give reviewers independent hardware, maintain supply, support developers, price products profitably, and let customers reach their own conclusions."
Maya studied the AMD and NVIDIA logos before speaking carefully. "They'll immediately ask how we jumped this far technologically."
Rachel's expression remained unreadable. "They can keep asking."
Victor leaned toward the table. "They're also going to recruit every engineer wearing a Titan badge."
Rachel changed the display toward the employee-retention plan. "Critical personnel receive better compensation, project bonuses, stock participation, security assistance, research freedom, and clear advancement opportunities. Nobody gets trapped by contracts beyond normal protection of confidential technology."
Alex gave her an approving look. "If someone genuinely wants to leave, they're free to leave. I want people working here because Titan gives them the best place to build something meaningful."
Noah glanced toward the Intel partnership line. "Intel's engineers are going to face the same recruiting pressure once people realize how advanced Apex really is."
Rachel nodded once. "Their side of the agreement includes separate security and retention provisions. Intel understands what they're sitting on."
The competitor logos faded while Titan, Intel, and Microsoft remained connected at the center of a larger ecosystem map.
Rachel brought up the long-term projection. "By the end of 2009, I want Titan synonymous with high-end gaming performance. By 2010, I want developers designing around Aegis capabilities from the beginning instead of treating them as optional features. By 2011, I want Titan hardware inside gaming PCs, professional workstations, VFX facilities, universities, research laboratories, and enough living rooms that every competitor has been forced to rebuild its roadmap around us."
Alex's expression changed slightly as he studied the complete hardware map.
Titan wasn't introducing a slightly faster GPU or another console generation. The System had given Alex a development path toward technology inspired by a world nearly seventeen years ahead of 2009.
Rachel changed the display back to the launch calendar.
MARCH 27: PROJECT AEGIS TEASER
APRIL 10: TITAN TECHNOLOGY DAY
APRIL 17: TITAN WORLD REVEAL
MAY 29: AEGIS GPU FAMILY + INTEL TITAN APEX LAUNCH
JUNE 12: TITAN MEMORY, FLASH, COREBOARDS, POWER, FROST + TITAN VISION
JULY 3: TITAN NOVA + MASS EFFECT
Alex clapped his hands once as he stood up. "Everything must go exactly as planned. I don't want any leaks or all that shits. Everyone will give their 100% and make this a success. And, after the success, everyone will get a big bonus cheque and every department will get an increased budget. So, do your best. That's all for today."
-[POWERSTONES & REVIEWS]--
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[5 advance chs] [All chs available for all tiers] + [Streamer in Modern Family> 29 chs> All chs available for all tiers]