One day in 1977, an ordinary child was born in the western district of Beijing, he was Zhao Xinpei. Both parents are technicians and busy with work, Zhao Xinpei has mainly lived with his grandmother since he was a child.
Fortunately, my grandmother's home is very close to Wangfujing, and life is integrated into this ancient and prosperous city. When he was 5 years old, his grandmother sent him to a nearby kindergarten in a beautiful environment to learn Xi.
That year, the director of the movie "Thrive" came to the kindergarten with the crew, and they wanted to choose a boy from among the children to play a small role in the new film.
This character needs to bravely snatch the ball from the little girl in a ball game. When the director's eyes fell on the little boy in red on the playing field, his eyes lit up.
I saw that the little boy was not afraid and snatched the ball from the girl's hand straightforwardly. "It's him, starring in his true colors!" The director immediately decided that 5-year-old Zhao Xinpei got his film debut.
For a child from an ordinary family, this is undoubtedly a turning point in life. When the red movie set opened in front of him, the little boy's excitement and curiosity can be imagined.
Accompanied by his mother throughout the whole process, Zhao Xinpei completed his first performance in "Thrive" like a fish in water. And the most memorable thing for Zhao Xinpei is that through this movie, he got to know a lady who later played an important role in his life - Yu Hong, the crew of the scene.
After that, Zhao Xinpei returned to the campus life of the downtown elementary school. Xi and games occupy most of the Beijing boy's time. Until one day, Yu Hong, the field reporter, suddenly found him who was in physical education class and asked him if he was interested in playing a TV series role again.
It turned out that she was serving as the field manager of the new version of "Journey to the West", and the crew was looking for a suitable "red child" actor for the Monkey King.
"Do you remember me? We had a great time working together last time, and this time we have a chance, do you want to try acting again?" Yu Hong's words immediately moved Zhao Xinpei, and he followed Yu Hong to the audition without saying a word.
That night, Zhao Xinpei excitedly shared the news with his mother. The mother looked at her son's sparkling eyes, looked at the popular "Journey to the West" in the living room stupidly, and smiled with satisfaction.
On the day of the audition, Zhao Xinpei put on a red costume, and his lively and cute appearance immediately won the favor of director Yang Jie. "All I want is such a mischievous 'red boy', he is very suitable for this role!" Director Yang is a discerning hero, and she immediately decided that Zhao Xinpei would play the role of the new version of "Red Child".
Zhao Xinpei, who is dressed in red, will also form an indissoluble bond with this warm color.
Under Director Yang's careful design, this version of the "Red Child" image is lifelike, witty and lively, and has been warmly sought after by the audience. The classic line "Are you a rescuer invited by the monkeys?" For a while, it spread all over the streets and alleys, and countless people remembered this cute "red child".
However, just when this role brought him unprecedented fame and attention, Zhao Xinpei's heart was already moved by something else: the seemingly cold thing of computers is attracting him day by day and becoming his new "favorite".
The filming of "Journey to the West" fell behind, and Zhao Xinpei, who could have ridden the popular role of "Red Child" to continue his development, resolutely chose to give up all the new drama invitations sent by the studio.
He returned to his familiar campus, only to find that a new computer class had been offered. The first time he came into contact with these seemingly cold machines, Zhao Xinpei's heart fluttered.
"That's what I want! Zhao Xinpei, who was exploring computers for the first time, was instantly attracted by the magical world behind these black screens.
Seeing this, the mother immediately fully supported her son's new hobby. In the summer of that year, she sent Zhao Xinpei to a special juvenile computer palace to learn Xi programming.
And his father did not hesitate to buy his first computer for him.
The more he devotes himself to this world, the more familiar and loved Zhao Xinpei feels. He found that every line of the original program could manipulate the robot to work and achieve its goals, and the feeling was as wonderful as working magic.
Even in the middle of summer, when the sun is scorching, he is willing to withstand the high temperature of 40 °C at home to "be with the robot". Computers have become the new whole thing for this little boy.
When his back was soaked with sweat, his mother persuaded him to go outside to play, but Zhao Xinpei shook his head and said, "No, I'm just playing here! In the choice after choice, Zhao Xinpei's heart had already answered.
So, when his parents asked him if he wanted to take on a new movie when he was in junior high school, he didn't hesitate to refuse. The computer has become the most tempting "confidant" of this Beijing boy in his life.
At the age of 18, Zhao Xinpei, a computer boy, got his wish and entered the computer science department of Peking University, Xi. It is home to the country's top AI scientists, and it is the paradise of his dreams.
Peking University's rigorous learning atmosphere and Xi pressure did not dampen Zhao Xinpei's motivation, but allowed him to explore this technology to a higher level. By his freshman year, he had already taught himself two new programming languages.
In his spare time, he will also go to Capital Normal University to audit relevant cutting-edge lectures.
"How do you make a machine understand language like a human?" What are the latest advances in neural network models?" These questions lingered in Zhao Xinpei's mind every day.
In order to find the answer, he began to immerse himself in scientific research projects and dissertations, hoping to give his original insights in his graduation thesis. During this period, his mother often joked: "I have lost weight again, and my face is triangular!" But she knows that this is her son's persistent pursuit of his dream.
In 1999, 22-year-old Zhao Xinpei got his wish to get a diploma from the Department of Computer Science of Peking University. But the excitement has not dissipated, and he entered the Institute of Software of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to start graduate school.
Focusing on scientific research projects and topics, he has been researching artificial intelligence-related technologies for several years. Finally, at the age of 26, Zhao Xinpei successfully obtained the Pyramid Tip Certificate of Doctor of Computer Science with an innovative graduation thesis.
This is the fruit of scholarly glory that belongs to a "computer boy" through his own efforts.
At the age of 26, Zhao Xinpei received his doctorate with honors, and many people thought that he would embark on the path of a university professor. Unexpectedly, this "computer man" who was full of wealth chose to start a business again, and established a high-tech company called "smart agriculture" with several doctoral classmates as CTO.
"We need to develop a set of cutting-edge technologies such as image recognition and environmental monitoring to help farmers achieve standardized planting and precise fertilization.
With a strong technical background and forward-looking business perspective, Zhao Xinpei quickly persuaded the venture capital team to obtain tens of millions of yuan in Series A financing.
The beginning of the business was not smooth, and the accuracy rate of the image recognition algorithm of the company's products was only 70%, and it could not be commercialized. Fortunately, Dr. Zhao Xinpei and his team did not give up, and they decided to use the latest deep learning Xi model for technical upgrades and system optimization.
After two months of continuous work, the accuracy of the algorithm finally reached 90%. The first products were finally available on the market and received positive feedback from customers.
The company also turned a profit that year, accumulating proof for the next round of funding.
Today, the company's monitoring products serve hundreds of thousands of growers. The number of downloads of its mobile app has also exceeded 1 million, achieving explosive growth in business.
Standing on the roof of the company building overlooking the fields, Zhao Xinpei looked at the dense sensors on the ground with satisfaction - this is his double harvest of enterprises and ideals.
Zhao Xinpei, who is now 43 years old, has gray hair and a much rounder figure than before. Compared with the lively and intelligent "Red Boy" on the TV screen in the past, he has changed so much that many people can't believe that this is "the person back then".
Facing the surprised eyes of the public, Zhao Xinpei just smiled slightly wryly.
He doesn't care about success in the eyes of others, and he doesn't value the empty evaluations and traffic data in the entertainment industry. Because since childhood, I have been determined to be a person who is "self-disciplined, self-reliant, and free".
His parents fully supported him on the path of computing, and he did not fail to live up to their expectations and cultivation. Now he is the founder and CEO of a company with a net worth of more than 100 million, as well as a happy husband and father.
"If I had to compare, my life was very fulfilling. Because my choice at each node is based on my own judgment and preferences. Maybe this road is less wind and snow and vanity, but it may bring me more focus and gain.
Talking about the choice to give up the entertainment industry when he was the most popular, Zhao Xinpei said.
Perhaps many celebrities will regret missing out on seizing opportunities and resources at their peak. But for Zhao Xinpei, who is a "self", finding a life that truly belongs to him is the most important thing.
Without the fetters of the world and the weight of remorse, he is living a very contented life. This is another star path that Zhao Xinpei chose.