In 2005, Intel CEO Paul Otellini surprised the company's board. According to a report from the New York Times, he suggested that Intel buy Nvidia for "as much as" $20 billion.
According to the Times's sources ("two people familiar with the boardroom discussion"), even some Intel executives thought that Nvidia's designs could eventually play an important role in data centers. While that idea would come to fruition with the modern AI boom, the board pushed back against it. It would have been Intel's most expensive acquisition, and there were worries about integrating the company. Otellini backed off, and that was that.
