Justin Sun’s Report on Meeting with Warren Buffett – TRON

And of course, a Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 with TRON blockchain embedded, loaded with 1 Bitcoin, 1,930,830 TRX, 100 BTT, 100 WIN, and 100 TRC20-USDT. The number of TRX matches Mr. Buffet’s birthday, and yes, now Mr. Buffett holds Bitcoin!

Warren Buffett’s cryptocurrency addresses:

BTC: https://btc.com/3AsXDKX1etLgegepVeJbhj7WeZiypVMgdt

TRX: https://tronscan.org/#/address/TFtQ66PeCKB29CKoLGyTYsh3k9oU6tuy7L

BTT: https://tronscan.org/#/address/TFtQ66PeCKB29CKoLGyTYsh3k9oU6tuy7L

WIN: https://tronscan.org/#/address/TFtQ66PeCKB29CKoLGyTYsh3k9oU6tuy7L

TRX20-USDT: https://tronscan.org/#/address/TFtQ66PeCKB29CKoLGyTYsh3k9oU6tuy7L

After presenting these gifts the dinner proceeded. What follows are some of the highlights of our conversation with Mr. Buffett:

On Delaying Our Lunch:

I apologized to Mr. Buffett regarding the delay of the lunch. Mr. Buffett was very understanding and said we were able to meet, after all, so all is good. He went on and emphasized that this time we are having dinner and not lunch. So it’s ok.

I further elaborated and provided insights. I told him “I didn’t do anything except for sending a tweet. I didn’t expect all of these dramatic things to happen”. Mr. Buffett said he’s also on Twitter, but he has assistant tweeting for him. He himself isn’t the most tech-savvy.

On My Winning Auction:

Mr. Buffett asked me about the details of the auction. I replied,“the auction was quite intensive. I had a very competitive opponent, and I created a mechanism to beat him/her for every bid by at least 100 dollars. After I learned that I beat him/her I selected a lucky number for myself.”

Mr. Buffett followed up and asked me, how much was your budget for the auction? I said, “10 million USD”. Mr. Buffett asked was it you or the team handling the bid. I said, “my team is closely monitoring everything, but I am the one handling it.”

On My Meeting with Steve Wozniak:

Mr. Buffett asked me about my meeting with Apple Co-Founder, Steve Wozniak, and wanted to relay his greetings to him. Mr. Buffett said, “Wozniak is a legend who shaped the development of Apple”. That comment took me by surprise because it suggested Mr. Buffett already knew about my meeting with Wozniak. It only happened two days prior to our dinner. Perhaps Mr. Buffett might be closely following my Twitter?

On Samsung:

Mr. Buffett said that Samsung is doing well in its market, although Apple rakes in most of the profit. But Samsung is really doing a great job. It is not easy considering the chairman of Samsung Lee Kun hee (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Kun-hee) is in the hospital for quite a long time. Mr. Buffett remarked that he hopes he gets better soon.

On The Giving Pledge:

I introduced myself as the first millennial graduate from Jack Ma’s Hupan University. Mr. Buffett said that he had high hopes for Jack Ma. When Mr. Buffett was in China, Jack Ma hosted him. Jack Ma also attended the Giving Pledge organized by Bill Gates and spoke highly of it. I expressed his willingness to participate in the event, and Mr. Buffett said he could contact Bill Gates since Bill Gates is trying to get more international participants. Mr. Buffett further added he would like to see more people outside the U.S. participate.

Mr. Buffet believes it’s not easy for an individual to excel at even just one thing. That’s why he donates all his money to Bill Gates’ Foundation because he thinks it’s better to let someone who can do a better job do it for him.

On Finding the Right Partner:

Mr. Buffett said “If you are not sure if your girlfriend is the one, then she isn’t. It’s the same with business partners.” He mentioned that he’s lucky to have found Charlie Munger, saying “it’s a matter of luck.” Charlie 35, Warren 28, worked at the same grocery store in high school, by luck!

On Blockchain:

Mr. Buffett said blockchain has its value. There are a lot of incredible companies in the payment market, and it has huge demands. He believes blockchain technology will have a disruptive effect on the future of payment.

On Bitcoin:

Mr. Buffett stated that the reason why he doesn’t think Bitcoin is not a good investment is that as much as he recognizes the value of blockchain, it is not all going into Bitcoin.

Mr. Buffet thinks people get protection from stocks and equity. The current U.S. dollar system does well. Bitcoin is simply a changing hands activity with no value-added. Mr. Buffet would rather buy acres of land. We can plant something and harvest it. Bitcoin cannot capture the value of blockchain. Just because something has value doesn’t mean it’s a good investment.

Mr. Buffett said the interesting thing about Bitcoin is that those who bought them always end up wanting to sell them.

I told Mr. Buffett about how Bitcoin is going to be the currency for the next generation. Although he doesn’t appreciate the value of Bitcoin, I’m sure his grandchildren will. Mr. Buffett smiled and said, “it’s not going to happen. I’m sure my grandson would rather inherit my wealth in US dollars.”

The third reason why Mr. Buffett doesn’t believe in Bitcoin is because he thinks the value of Bitcoin is only for trading and does not have practical value. The US dollars is able to store value, but Bitcoin is not capable of doing so, and therefore it’s not so different from a seashell.

Chris Lee mentioned Bitcoin is decentralized, while a national currency is centralized and the control of the supply is by a government body or centralized party. The Oversupply of paper money legally robs the poor’s wealth. He went on and said, Bitcoin is a kind of digital gold. Bitcoin has its demand. Its a store of value; the value is in its consensus. Masayoshi Son and Tim Draper are big fans of Bitcoin, too. One day it may become a global reserve currency.

On Family:

Mr. Buffett said if you work so your children don’t have to work, you might as well stop working.

Mr. Buffett said he would like to leave his family enough money so that they would feel they could do anything, but not so much that they could do nothing.

On Marriage:

Mr. Buffett said he was married at the age of 23. Back then, people married early, and he’s still happily married.

In regards to marriage having the same culture, having the same beliefs, and things like wanting kids or no kids would make things easier.

Mr. Buffet said competition is the last thing you want in a marriage. It cannot turn into a competitive relationship, which is why it’s best not to end up with someone who’s constantly competing with you. He’s seen lots of couples who are in competitive relationships suffer from unhappy marriages.

On Investing:

Mr. Buffett bought his first insurance at the age of 23. He did this for his wife and children so even if he had died the next day, his family would be able to receive $50K, showing that he’s a cautious family man.

Mr. Buffet said it’s not easy for an individual to excel at even just one thing. It’s hard for him to just be successful at investing based on the book Intelligent Investor. He then signed an Intelligent Investor book and gave it as a gift to me. He went to say he’s dedicated his life to something he can be good at which can bring him happiness.

Investing, unlike the medical and sports industries, is one of the few areas that is not constrained by age and relies on experience.

Mr. Buffett said if you had a crystal ball, and it tells you smartphones will change the world in ten years, then is it a good idea to invest in smartphones? No. Because most companies didn’t survive except for Apple. Even those who survived are having a difficult time. It’s not the best industry to invest in.

Berkshire Hathaway has two million shareholders. Mr. Buffett said he would only make an investment he can sleep well at night with. He doesn’t invest in new technologies. He only pays attention to the business.

In his conversation with Yoni, Mr. Buffett talked about an Israeli business he invested in. He gave them 2 billion dollars the first time and 4 billion dollars the second time. This business created significant social value for Israel. We also talked about the CEO of Overstock, Patrick Byrne, who is a good friend of Mr. Buffett, but his Bitcoin business is not doing very well.

Chris asked Warren in terms of Financial Ratios such as Free Cash Flow, Gross Profit Margin, Net Profit Margin, which one is more important. Mr. Buffett thinks the cash flow condition is the best representation of real business performance. Fundamental analyses are important for an individual stock. Berkshire Hathaway keeps its cash level at a healthy level. Too much cash reserves would drag down the return.

On Tesla:

I told Mr. Buffett I have invested in Tesla since 2012 because I believe Tesla is creating a new ecosystem as Apple did in 2007.

Mr. Buffett said Elon Musk is a great entrepreneur. A large industry with huge potential. But he doesn’t believe Tesla is a good investment.

The automobile industry is a field with immense competition and lots of aggressive players. Since Ford, the US has had over two thousand automobile manufacturers, and now only three are left and none of them are currently doing well. As much as the automobile industry changed the world in a good way, investors nor businesses benefited from it. On the contrary, the whole industry is stuck in endless competition. The same is true with consumer electronics. With smartphones, Apple is the only major winner, even Samsung hasn’t been able to make that much earnings.

Tesla is facing a lot of competition, and these businesses would rather file for bankruptcy than quit. For Tesla, the future is full of uncertainty. Mr. Buffett said, “Close your eyes and imagine what the news headlines’ gonna be in ten years”. Think about the most likely one, not the one you want to see the most.

Chris asked which entrepreneur does Mr. Buffett admire the most. Mr. Buffett said, Bezos. And Jack Ma is the one he admired the most in China.

On Meeting Again:

Mr. Buffett joked about having lunch again in 2030 so we could have a reunion. Mr. Buffett will be there on time, and hopefully, we can meet as I’ll definitely like to be there as well. Mr. Buffet also extended an invitation to the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting.

On Banking:

Mr. Buffett also talked about how not everyone needs banking services. For example, his wife hasn’t used any banking services for 15 years and relies solely on cash and checks. She doesn’t feel inconvenient at all.

On Income Equality:

Mr. Buffet said it is an obvious question, what does one of the most successful people in the world think about income equality? He mentioned the top 1% own the most wealth of the population. Yet, it was much worse hundreds of years ago. So actually equality in society is getting better. Capitalism as a system is great and ensures taking care of the public.

One of the most memorable experiences during dinner was when I demonstrated to Mr. Buffett how to use TRON for transferring tokens through the Samsung Galaxy Fold I gave him. 45.67888 TRX was instantly transferred. This transaction amount mirrors the winning auction amount of 4,567,888 USD that was donated to the Glide Foundation for Mr. Buffett and myself to meet.

Upon witnessing the completion of the transfer, Mr. Buffett was delighted and said blockchain has its value. He remarked that there are a lot of incredible companies in the payment space, and it has huge demands. Mr. Buffett went on to say that blockchain technology will have a disruptive effect on the future of payments.

Here is the Transaction Hash: https://tronscan.org/#/transaction/6876418e90962449c2c3c5a0d85cbc3b17ab4885b12b9b06ae3a4b69a559636b

Overall, my impressions are that Mr. Buffett is a prudent, disciplined, and patient person. He follows his own rules and sticks to them. He has strong convictions and is decisive. He embraces certainties over uncertainties and things he can fundamentally understand. I am thankful for the lessons learned during this experience. I feel like Mr. Buffett gave me phenomenal consultation. If there is a chance to collaborate with Mr. Buffett in the future in any way, I would love to work with him.

It’s been a long, difficult journey to reach this point, but thank you, everyone, for your patience and understanding on this extraordinary occasion. This is not just monumental for the TRON Foundation and our community, but for the entire blockchain space as a whole. We have made progress together. We have reached out to the other side and are marching towards sharing true dialogue.

At TRON we strive our best to deliver. The blockchain market is still nascent and rapidly growing. There’s doubt in this market; there are questions and concerns. And sometimes it takes longer than anticipated, but TRON executed and we delivered eventually. This time around we were fortunate to deliver in a big way. Not just for TRON and our community, but also for the whole blockchain community. We had an opportunity to start an open dialogue. Let’s work together to change the general public’s mindset in our space. Let’s decentralize the internet together!

— Justin Sun, Founder of TRON and CEO of BitTorrent