17-08-2018, 04:23 PM
Redcore CEO admits ‘100pc China-developed browser’ is built on Google’s Chrome, says writing code from scratch would ‘take many years’
Redcore, which recently raised 250 million yuan (US$36 million) in funding, said on its website that its browser had ‘broken the American monopoly’
Sarah Dai
PUBLISHED : Friday, 17 August, 2018, 4:02am
UPDATED : Friday, 17 August, 2018, 6:27am
A Beijing-based start-up that claimed to have developed an original China web browser has admitted it had based its software on Google’s Chrome, following online accusations that it had ripped off the American internet company’s program.
Redcore, which recently raised 250 million yuan (US$36 million) in funds, said on its website that its browser had “broken the American monopoly”. That claim was challenged after an online posting purporting to show the installer containing Chrome files went viral.
On Thursday afternoon, Chen Benfeng, founder and chief executive of Redcore, said in an interview at the company’s offices in a technology cluster in northwest Beijing, that it was wrong to have made such a claim.
“We don’t deny building on Chrome’s browser engine,” said Chen, who wore a Nike T-shirt with the “Just Do It” slogan. “The web browser is a very old technology, writing the code from scratch will take many years. It’s like Android was built on the foundation of Linux, but nobody doubts Android or Google’s innovation. Google and Apple also did not write the first line of code, doing so would be reinventing the wheel.”
The public climbdown by Redcore is sure to add to the growing debate about China’s overblown technological strength, and draws comparisons to false claims of breakthroughs in the past, including the case of Hanxin, in which a professor sanded down Motorola chips to pass off as his own innovation.
More details in https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/216007...hrome-says
Redcore, which recently raised 250 million yuan (US$36 million) in funding, said on its website that its browser had ‘broken the American monopoly’
Sarah Dai
PUBLISHED : Friday, 17 August, 2018, 4:02am
UPDATED : Friday, 17 August, 2018, 6:27am
A Beijing-based start-up that claimed to have developed an original China web browser has admitted it had based its software on Google’s Chrome, following online accusations that it had ripped off the American internet company’s program.
Redcore, which recently raised 250 million yuan (US$36 million) in funds, said on its website that its browser had “broken the American monopoly”. That claim was challenged after an online posting purporting to show the installer containing Chrome files went viral.
On Thursday afternoon, Chen Benfeng, founder and chief executive of Redcore, said in an interview at the company’s offices in a technology cluster in northwest Beijing, that it was wrong to have made such a claim.
“We don’t deny building on Chrome’s browser engine,” said Chen, who wore a Nike T-shirt with the “Just Do It” slogan. “The web browser is a very old technology, writing the code from scratch will take many years. It’s like Android was built on the foundation of Linux, but nobody doubts Android or Google’s innovation. Google and Apple also did not write the first line of code, doing so would be reinventing the wheel.”
The public climbdown by Redcore is sure to add to the growing debate about China’s overblown technological strength, and draws comparisons to false claims of breakthroughs in the past, including the case of Hanxin, in which a professor sanded down Motorola chips to pass off as his own innovation.
More details in https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/216007...hrome-says
Specuvestor: Asset - Business - Structure.