At the age of 72, Dong Mingzhu, who has "stepped down", finally won this decade-long bet.

Is Dong Mingzhu stepping down?

Recently, nearly 72-year-old Dong Mingzhu stepped down as the executive director and legal representative of Zhuhai Gree Electronic Components Co., Ltd., and passed the baton to Fang Xiangjian, a veteran who has served Gree for more than 20 years.

Many people don't know that before stepping down, Ms. Dong also made a big move.

While global new energy giants were locked in a fierce battle between lithium iron phosphate and ternary lithium technologies, an "outsider" in the air - conditioning industry spent 9 years persevering and turned an obscure technology into a national treasure.

At the end of 2025, the list of the 23rd China Patent Gold Awards was announced, causing a stir in the new energy industry. The winner was not BYD, nor CATL, but Gree Titanium Battery under Gree Electric Appliances.

This result left the entire lithium - battery circle stunned. You know, the predecessor of Gree Titanium, Yinlong New Energy, was an "awful mess" 8 years ago, with a debt of 24.2 billion yuan and its founder running away with the money.

All this reversal stems from Dong Mingzhu's high - stakes bet in 2016 that was mocked nationwide: She personally invested 2.34 billion yuan, joined hands with business tycoons like Liu Qiangdong, and forcibly acquired the lithium titanate technology with a market share of less than 1% at that time.

Unexpectedly, 10 years later, Dong Mingzhu showed everyone that she really won this 10 - year bet.

A Bold Bet Against the Odds: When a "Madman" Meets a "Junk Technology"

Compared with her current glory, Dong Mingzhu almost suffered the biggest "setback" in her career at the 2016 shareholders' meeting.

At that time, she strongly promoted Gree's plan to acquire Yinlong New Energy for 13 billion yuan, which was unanimously rejected by small and medium - sized shareholders. Institutional investors voted with their feet, believing it was just "an outsider's senseless meddling".

At that time, although Yinlong New Energy owned lithium titanate battery technology, it was a complete "outsider" in the market dominated by lithium iron phosphate and ternary lithium. It had low energy density and high cost, with an installed capacity of less than 1% of the market, and was regarded as a "hopeless" technology route in the industry.

Facing a complete defeat, Dong Mingzhu made an even more crazy decision: She bet 2.34 billion yuan in her personal capacity and invited entrepreneurs like Wang Jianlin and Liu Qiangdong to invest together. They injected a total of 3 billion yuan to acquire Yinlong.

"I'll stake my whole fortune on this," Dong Mingzhu declared defiantly. "We'll take on the tough challenges others shy away from and break through the technologies others can't master."

However, she was hit hard as soon as she entered the game. In 2018, the former actual controller of Yinlong ran away with the money, leaving a debt black hole of 24.2 billion yuan. The factory shut down, orders plummeted, and suppliers blocked the door to collect debts... Everyone thought Dong Mingzhu would admit defeat and quit.

Instead, she took over the mess without hesitation. While tracing the lost assets, she gritted her teeth and persisted in technological R & D. For 9 years, Gree continuously provided support to Gree Titanium. In the first half of 2024 alone, it provided a loan guarantee of 2.483 billion yuan.

Dong Mingzhu's perseverance finally silenced all doubters with a set of hard - core data.

Charge for 6 minutes and last for a whole day - The charging speed of Gree Titanium Battery is comparable to refueling. Compared with mainstream batteries that take 30 - 60 minutes for a fast charge, Gree Titanium can be fully charged in just 6 minutes, more than 5 times faster than ordinary fast - charging batteries.

What's even more amazing is the lifespan data. The cycle life of ordinary lithium batteries is only 2000 - 5000 times, while Gree Titanium Battery can withstand 30,000 charge - discharge cycles. Calculated by one charge per day, its theoretical lifespan is as long as 30 years. Actual test data from the Beijing bus system shows that after 7 years of operation, the battery capacity of buses equipped with Gree Titanium Battery still remains above 95%.

In terms of safety performance, it completely crushes its opponents. In extreme tests such as needle - pricking, squeezing, and high - temperature burning, Gree Titanium Battery always doesn't catch fire or explode. Some technicians cut it with a saw and punched holes with a drill, but the battery remained stable.

Behind these disruptive performances is Gree Titanium's unique skill - "Self - crystallization technology of mesoporous microsphere lithium titanate materials". This technology constructs a three - dimensional lattice structure, allowing lithium ions to move extremely fast and fundamentally eliminating the formation of "lithium dendrites" that cause battery short - circuits.

Unexpectedly, in just ten years, Dong Mingzhu slapped those who didn't believe in her hard in the face with reality.

Breaking into the Trillion - Dollar Battlefield from the "Marginal Track"

Actually, this is not the first time Dong Mingzhu has achieved a reversal.

It was already proven in her old - line business of air - conditioners. In 1994, Gree Electric Appliances faced a major crisis when some key salesmen suddenly "resigned en masse", and the company's operations were in trouble. At this critical moment, Dong Mingzhu chose to stay.

Due to her outstanding performance, Dong Mingzhu was unanimously elected as the head of the company's business department. This was a difficult choice because salesmen could earn more than 1 million yuan a year, while the head of the business department only earned more than 100,000 yuan a year. But Dong Mingzhu believed that the value of life should not be measured by money alone, and she resolutely accepted this challenge.

After taking office, Dong Mingzhu launched a series of reforms. She improved the rules and regulations, re - established the management order, and promoted the "payment before delivery" model throughout the company.

In addition, she introduced the "off - season rebate" policy to encourage dealers to pay in the off - season, alleviating the company's capital pressure. Facing the tough market environment, Dong Mingzhu refused to cut prices. Instead, she used 2% of the 100 - million - yuan profit to subsidize dealers. As a result, Gree's sales volume increased by 17% that year, surpassing Chunlan for the first time to become the industry leader.

The same goes for battery - making this time. Although lithium titanate batteries have limited application in the passenger - car market, Dong Mingzhu cleverly chose a differentiated breakthrough route and found her own way: Focusing on specific scenarios.

In the urban bus field, Gree Titanium accurately meets the high - frequency operation requirements with its fast - charging and long - lifespan characteristics. It has been put into use in the bus systems of more than 200 cities such as Beijing and Chengdu, with a penetration rate of over 60% in the fast - charging bus battery market.

In the energy - storage market, Gree Titanium shines even more. Scenarios such as the world's largest grid - forming energy - storage power station in the Tengger Desert of Ningxia, the high - altitude photovoltaic energy - storage project in Tibet, and the energy - storage power station in Denmark have all become its "main battlefields". It also won the Gold Award at the Nuremberg International Invention Exhibition in Germany. Its lifespan is 6 - 8 times that of traditional lithium batteries, and it can operate stably in a wide temperature range from - 50°C to 60°C.

Many people don't expect that Gree Titanium Battery is exported in large quantities to more than 30 countries such as Switzerland, Denmark, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates, generating annual foreign exchange earnings of over 100 billion yuan. In the cold ports of Finland and the desert areas of the United Arab Emirates, Gree Titanium Battery has become the "must - have choice" in extreme environments.

The technology route once mocked as "marginalized" has instead become a powerful weapon for conquering special scenarios.

Dong Mingzhu proved in 10 years that there is no junk technology, only resources in the wrong place.

It's Not Just About Batteries; Dong Mingzhu Has Bigger Ambitions

Recently, Dong Mingzhu was confronted by young people again.

In a recent media interview, Dong Mingzhu was asked, "Do today's young people still have the opportunity to grow from the front - line to become the leaders of enterprises?" In response, Dong Mingzhu said bluntly, "This question should be answered by young people themselves, not me. They need to be patient and be able to take losses."

Netizens' comments on such remarks are simple and straightforward: "Sounds like an old - fashioned lecture", "It smells like an old - fashioned person", "Here she goes again, lecturing young people."

There are many such controversies. However, in the face of the current rapidly changing macro - environment, it can be seen that her "ability to take losses" is not just an empty phrase.

Looking at Dong Mingzhu's battery layout, there is actually a whole - set of full - industry - chain strategy behind it that requires "patience".

As early as 2018, Gree established Zhuhai Lingbianjie Integrated Circuit Co., Ltd., focusing on the R & D of home - appliance chips. In less than two years, its shipment volume exceeded 10 million pieces. This accumulated experience in independent R & D from scratch for Gree.

In Dong Mingzhu's plan, the battery is Gree's "second growth curve" and a crucial part of connecting the entire new - energy industry chain. From air - conditioner compressors to chips and then to batteries, every step points to the same goal:

To firmly hold the core technology in its own hands.

The rise of Gree Titanium has directly fed back into Gree's energy - storage air - conditioners, household energy - storage products, and new - energy vehicle business, forming a technological closed - loop and market synergy. In the future, Gree may provide an integrated solution of "chip + battery + whole machine" rather than just being a battery - cell supplier.

This full - industry - chain thinking gives Gree a unique competitiveness in the new - energy track. While other battery companies are still competing on price and energy density, Gree has built a complete ecosystem from materials to systems, from manufacturing to application.

The counter - attack of Gree Titanium is essentially a victory of long - termism over short - term interests.

In an era of chasing quick money, Dong Mingzhu chose the most difficult path: Persevering in technology. "When we choose projects, we don't do them just for making money, but for future development needs."

This strategic determination is particularly precious in the impetuous manufacturing environment. Over the past 9 years, Gree Titanium has invested countless R & D expenses.

More importantly, Dong Mingzhu has injected an extremely focused engineer culture into Gree Titanium. Thanks to the continuous efforts of many engineers and their decade - long perseverance, Gree Titanium has won the recognition of the Patent Gold Award.

Looking back on this counter - attack journey, Dong Mingzhu has demonstrated what true industrial spirit is with her actions: Don't just follow the trends; focus on the needs. Don't chase after hot spots; break through the difficulties.

From an "outsider" mocked nationwide to a "technology expert" who won the industry's first Patent Gold Award, Dong Mingzhu completed the most wonderful counter - attack script in China's manufacturing industry in 10 years.

While others are struggling in the mature tracks, she chose to innovate in the marginal areas; while the industry is chasing short - term profits, she