"CEO and co-founder Jensen Huang recalled recently how a $5 million gift following a failed business deal with Sega gave the company the lifeline it needed at the time, allowing the fledgling company to stay in business and eventually become what it is today."
"However, Huang still wanted the last $5 million that Sega was due to pay Nvidia for its work on the contract. He told Sega management that Sega could give Nvidia the money as an investment, but Huang frankly admitted that "it is most likely to be lost" given Nvidia's lack of business opportunities."
"But a top Sega boss apparently took a liking to Huang and decided to give him the money as an investment because "Jensen was a young man [the CEO] liked. That's it." Huang said there was about a 0% chance that Nvidia would be able to return Sega the money."
Nvidia received a $5 million investment from Sega after failing to secure the Dreamcast contract because the company lacked the technical capability to meet Sega's requirements. Nvidia accepted the payment as an investment despite admitting a high likelihood of failure due to limited business opportunities. A Sega executive chose to invest partly because of a personal liking for Jensen Huang. The $5 million enabled Nvidia to continue operating, build its video-game graphics business, and pursue growth. Nvidia went public in 1999 at a $300 million valuation, at which point Sega sold its stake. Nvidia later grew to a market capitalization exceeding $4 trillion amid an AI-driven boom.
Read at GameSpot
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