Chapter 454

The dinner that evening was with Mr. Ashcroft, the CEO of Axiom Flux Technologies.

Earlier that morning, PrimeStar Technologies had finalized a partnership agreement with Axiom Flux Technologies.

After their meal, Charlene and Stewart headed over to Axiom Flux’s headquarters. They spent hours in deep discussion with the engineering team, only parting ways close to midnight.

Over the next two days, Charlene made frequent trips to Axiom Flux. She and the engineers worked overtime together, often staying late into the night.

Friday marked the date of Axiom Flux’s product launch event, an occasion the company had scheduled over a month ago. The reason for their relentless work ethic was simple—they wanted their collaborative ideas to be fine-tuned and, if possible, partially realized before the launch. With the groundwork laid, the focus of Axiom Flux’s launch event was about to undergo a drastic shift.

In the early hours of Friday morning, after finally heading home for a few hours of rest, Charlene and Stewart both made their way to the Axiom Flux launch event.

The company had invited numerous journalists and industry peers to attend. As fellow professionals in the field, Thorne and Vesta were naturally among those invited.

Charlene and Stewart, exhausted from their recent marathon of late nights, arrived a little later than most. The moment they walked into the main hall, Vesta and Thorne spotted them.

Vesta paused briefly when she saw them.

Axiom Flux’s decision to invite so many industry peers was, of course, about more than just showcasing technology; it was also an unspoken invitation for future collaborations.

PrimeStar, with its strong reputation in language systems, had recently ended its partnership with Neural Nexus Tech, and while they’d since begun working with The Henderson Group, the nature of the new collaboration was quite different from before. This meant PrimeStar was still open to working with other autonomous vehicle companies in the area of language systems.

It wasn’t hard for Vesta to guess that Ashcroft’s invitation to Stewart was likely about this very opportunity.

Despite being one of the newer players in the tech industry, Axiom Flux had developed rapidly over the past few years. Their autonomous vehicles were among the most influential on the domestic market. If they could now join forces with PrimeStar, whose national profile and technical capabilities were undeniable, the partnership would surely give Axiom Flux a competitive edge in the autonomous vehicle sector.

Still, Vesta wasn’t worried. Neural Nexus Tech’s competitive advantage in autonomous driving didn’t rest solely on language systems. Her own company had its strengths.

With that thought, Vesta calmly looked away.

Noticing Charlene and Stewart’s arrival, Mr. Ashcroft immediately came over, greeting them with a bright, welcoming smile.

Seeing how much importance Ashcroft placed on Stewart, Vesta’s suspicions about his intentions to collaborate with PrimeStar only grew stronger.

After exchanging a few words with Stewart and Charlene, Mr. Ashcroft excused himself to finalize preparations. The launch event was about to begin.

The Henderson Group held a commanding position in the tech world, and Thorne, as their representative, was naturally seated in the front row. Vesta, taking advantage of her association with Thorne, was also seated in the front, right beside him.

After working closely with Charlene the past few days, Mr. Ashcroft had come to realize that she was, in fact, the technical powerhouse driving this collaboration. Her seat was even closer to the center than Stewart’s.

Stewart, noticing that Charlene had been seated next to Thorne, wasn’t surprised. Without hesitation, he took the seat assigned to Charlene. With a small smile, Charlene simply sat down in Stewart’s own spot.

Vesta hadn’t expected Charlene’s seat to be placed right next to Thorne, but she didn’t dwell on it. She assumed the staff must have thought Charlene and Stewart were a couple, and wouldn’t mind sitting together.

Thorne saw Stewart take Charlene’s seat but said nothing. Instead, he greeted Stewart with polite formality. “Mr. Ferguson.”

Stewart responded with a curt nod.

At that moment, the event began.

The launch proceeded smoothly, the first half following the original agenda. Midway through, Mr. Ashcroft took the stage for his address.

“Our latest project represents a leap forward in intelligent technology,” he announced. “Not only does our autonomous driving system break new ground, but so does our engine technology.”

“Axiom Flux Technologies has remained at the forefront of our industry, earning the respect of our peers. Recently, we’ve established a long-term partnership with PrimeStar Technologies, resulting in significant breakthroughs across multiple fronts. Now, I’d like to invite PrimeStar’s outstanding engineer, Ms. Charlene Ross, to the stage to introduce and explain the advances we’ve made together. Please welcome Ms. Ross!”