The Ericsson stand at the world exhibition.
In 1896, however, Cedergren did something that can only be described as a hostile act towards Lars Magnus. Cedergren founded AB Telefonfabriken, in which SAT was the major shareholder, and started to compete with L.M. Ericsson & Co. The aim was not only to provide SAT with telephone equipment but also to look for markets abroad.
Thirteen years of collaboration with Lars Magnus had taught Cedergren and his colleagues to think about quality in practical terms when it came to telephones, exchanges, switchboards and other equipment. Cedergren's tour de force at the Stockholm Exhibition was a multiple switchboard manufactured by AB Telefonfabriken. This was the first in Sweden to be equipped with relays and signal lamps, and was also the largest in the world, with capacity in its multiple crossbars for 20,000 plugs.
Remarks like these do not indicate any real gift of foresight, but in his actions Lars Magnus did in fact display determination and the capacity to take risks. "His energy and his industriousness, his great passion for his work and his day-to-day conduct were not characteristic of a pessimist" is how Johansson put it.