Just keep in mind there are two factors to Apple M1 running much cooler:
1) the M1 is cooler than Intel
2) the M1 Macs have very well designed cooling systems (fans, heat sinks, heat pipes, heat spreaders), whereas the Intel Macs have such horrendously bad cooling designs that it beggars belief.
Just be aware that the Intel Macs would run a LOT cooler if they had the same quality of cooling design. Sure, still not as cool as the M1 Macs, but a LOT cooler than they are.
The Retina and earlier models (mid-2015 and earlier) all ran nice and cool with good cooling systems (I run my Retina MBP on my lap in shorts all the time, it's not even beyond lukewarm to touch, and very very rarely runs up the fan, basically just like the M1 Macs). Apple gimped the models that came after that. And then fixed them again for M1.