3dfx’s executives knew that Nvidia was under significant financial strain and considered making an acquisition play for their fading rival. Even though its first two chips had failed to gain traction, Nvidia still had some of the best graphics engineers in Silicon Valley on its payroll. In the end, however, 3dfx executives opted not to make a move. Its executives believed that Nvidia’s bankruptcy was inevitable, and that it would be cheaper to wait until Nvidia collapsed so that they could pick up its talent and assets for a bargain.
