Just as Benjamin noticed the change in his schedule, he spotted a movement on one of the cameras. A man had arrived at the reception on the 15th floor. He wore simple pants and a lose shirt with folded sleeves. He had curly, blond hair and a sunny smile.
Benjamin furrowed his brows as the man approached the reception, talking and laughing with the female receptionist.
This man was his brother, William Bender. He was the major shareholder of the company! Why would he waste valuable time chatting with their employees? If he wanted to take a woman home, he could simply pay for it.
Benjamin continued watching as his brother took the elevator, stopping a few times to talk to the employees, inquiring about their work. Again, a waste of time. William could simply ask Aqua. The AI can answer all his questions. Quick and efficient. No need to talk to disposable people.
A moment later Benjamin turned his head away, knowing that what he was doing wasn't productive either. Instead, he started to work.
Right now, Aquoria was trying to break into the market of Mecutis, a neighbouring province. But they met with more obstacles than expected. It was not only because of the competition but also because of the consumers.
People simple appeared reluctant to give the unfamiliar product a try. Their advertising strategy of hailing Aquoria as a highly natural product didn't seem to work well.
Since their initial market analysis had predicted a different result, Benjamin was pressed to find out what went wrong. According to initial information compiled by Aqua, drawn from the public Cybernet, Aquoria's bad reputation seemed to be a big reason.
However, Benjamin was rather dismissive of this. In this day and age which company had a good reputation? Why would consumers care more when it came to Aquoria? Benjamin suspected the local competitors were pulling some tricks. Thus, he went through reports, thinking of solutions.
Benjamin sank into work, but it didn't last long as a message flashed on his screen. It informed Benjamin that William was about to come into the office. Before Benjamin could prepare, the sliding door opened and his brother arrived, still wearing that annoying smile.
"Morning, dear brother! Are you well? Are you ready to help me lead Aquoria to a prosperous future?"
Benjamin exhaled, putting on a polite smile. William was now his boss whether he liked it or not.
"Morning William. I'm glad you showed up at least…"
"Why do you always need to be so grumpy? Benjamin, you know my travels were for the company! It increases creativity! Who came up with our current branding, hm? Aquoria - the source of life! Do you think I could have thought of that staying in this dark city?"
"Aqua could have thought of that."
William shook his head with a sigh:
"You are relying too much on this AI. It wouldn't be the same. It lacks that human touch! AI can't move people, Benjamin!"
"Oh, but you can? Then why are we failing in Mecutis? Here, take a look."
"Don't worry. I already know about it. This is exactly the reason why I scheduled a meeting for today. Did you see it?"
"Of course. Aqua reminded me."
"Good, good. Well, that's the reason I came here for. I still have to do some preparations to do. See you in two hours!"
William nodded at his brother, turned around, and left the office. Only as the door was closed tightly did Benjamin's eyes narrow.
"I have been working on this problem for weeks while you were out travelling. And now you come back and think you can produce a solution? Just like that? Are you kidding me, dear brother?!"
The last two words were grinded between Benjamin's teeth. He closed his eyes and tried to calm down.
After a second Benjamin had emptied his thoughts and went back to work. Time passed quickly. Finally, the scheduled meeting arrived.
Benjamin entered the large meeting room, nodding at the people present. There were a dozen men and women in strict business clothes sitting on a long table. When they saw Benjamin, everyone nodded respectfully. Benjamin wore a dignified smile and took his seat close to the head of the table.
To Benjamin's left was an older man with a protruding belly. He wore a fine suit and had his greying hair combed backwards. He liked to fiddle with the watch on his wrist. Some might think the marvel of modern technology was sitting too tight, but Benjamin knew that the man simply liked to flaunt the accessory which cost as much as the yearly rent of some middle-class flats.
"Mister Bender."
"Mister Haifield."
Benjamin responded in kind as the man greeted him. He was the head of Wahve Investments, which held five percent shares in Aquoria. Benjamin and him always got along splendidly, their ideas aligning.
"Do you know why your brother called for this meeting?", inquired Haifield quietly.
"He says it is because of the company's struggles in the Mecutis market."
"Really? What could he want? Retreat?"
"I don't know. But if he really suggests this, I will be the first to refuse."
Benjamin spoke a bit louder on purpose. He glanced around the room, reading much agreement in the other's eyes. The company had invested too much. They couldn't pull back now. Whether it was Miss Lunter, one of the smaller investors, or Mister Nessar, the company's CFO, they shared Benjamin's opinion.
Seeing this, he sneered inwardly, knowing that his position in the company was rock solid. Although his brother had become the major shareholder, Benjamin was still in control!
Just then the door opened, and William came in. His smile stood in stark contrast to everyone's stern expressions. He walked to the head of the table and overlooked the meeting room. After a short round of exchanging greetings William began to talk:
"Everyone is here? Great. Then I won't waste your valuable time and start right away. Aqua!"
"Yes, sir."
The AI knew exactly what William wanted. A large screen lit up behind his back showing the company's logo.
"I am sure you all know what the most important issue for Aquoria is right now. Our push into the Mecutis market."
William began to talk, first presenting the current situation. While he did so, Aqua autonomously displayed the relevant information on the screen. There was no need to prepare a presentation beforehand, Aqua developed it on the fly.
For a few minutes William mostly repeated information the people present already knew. It was about the difficulties the company met with since a year ago, and how Aquoria was even taken out of the assortment by some of the Mecutis discounters. Eventually, he presented a current survey in which consumers stated that they didn't want to support Aquoria because of its bad reputation.
"You see how people over in Mecutis dislike us. I know, some of you will dismiss this idea. But this would be wrong. I think this survey does hold a lot of truth. To understand why, we need to look at the current political sentiment in Mecutis.
In Mecutis social issues have always held a high priority. Don't forget that President Green, who passed the AI Regulation Act a hundred years ago, came from Mecutis. And this was at a time when AI was just in its infancy.
This perfectly reflects the attitude of Mecutis citizens. They are pro regulation, have a social mindset, and dislike big corporations. Of course, this only goes so far. Everyone needs to eat and drink, and everyone needs money to survive. Thus, I suggest that if we could polish our reputation a bit, we would find it much easier to make progress in Mecutis."
William paused for a moment, allowing everyone to digest his words. He looked around the room and his eyes met his brother's. Benjamin wore a deep frown. It was apparent that he didn't agree.
Stared at by his brother Benjamin expressed his skepticism:
"And how do you plan on improving our reputation?"
"Well, dear bother. Of course we will do what every other company does. Charity work!"
"You… this is a joke, right?"
"Why would you think so? Isn't this the most obvious answer? We have so many possibilities which are easy and cost effective for us. For example, providing clean water for the people in the exhaust district. Their water there is contaminated with chemicals and illnesses. And if there is something we have enough of, it is clear water, we…"
"Stop! William, are you even listening to yourself? You are talking about handing out our precious water for free?! To the people in the exhaust district? Those poor wretches? And you think THIS will help us to conquer the Mecutis market?!"
As Benjamin suddenly interrupted William, the atmosphere in the room became tense. Even William showed a hint of displeasure as he stared at his brother.
"If you have a different opinion, please elaborate…"
"Sure. I've looked into it, and I'm convinced that this survey is bullsh*t. The real obstacles are our competitors. Especially Siva! We have heavy clues that they pushed for us to be taken out of the assortment of multiple markets!"