Where’s the Gaming GPU? Nvidia Remains All About AI at CES Event

LAS VEGAS—Sorry PC gamers, but Nvidia didn’t talk at all about graphics cards or gaming at its CES event today. Instead, the presentation was firmly focused on the company’s newest AI chips meant to help the largest tech companies unleash even more generative AI programs. 

For nearly two hours, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang discussed the company’s enterprise business, especially for AI data centers, which makes up nearly 90% of its revenue. The most significant news was that Nvidia has started “full production” of its Rubin platform, the successor to the Blackwell architecture.  

(Credit: Nvidia)

Nvidia has talked plenty about Rubin before, but it’s now ready to start pumping out the cutting-edge AI chips, which will be packed into servers meant for the newest data centers. The Rubin platform isn’t one AI chip, but six. The main two are the Rubin GPU, which spans 336 billion transistors, along with the Vera CPU, which features 88 “custom Olympus cores.” 

(Credit: Nvidia)

(Credit: Nvidia)

The Rubin GPU itself promises to offer a five times performance increase in AI inference compared to Blackwell, thus lowering the costs and energy demands to run and train AI programs such as chatbots. The company plans on packing hundreds of Rubin GPUs and the related AI chips into servers, effectively selling the systems like supercomputers. All the major AI labs including Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta, and Elon Musk’s xAI are looking to adopt the Rubin platform, according to Nvidia. 

The company will also sell the AI chips through partners, such as server makers, starting in the second half of 2026. Meanwhile, major cloud providers like Amazon’s AWS, Microsoft, and Google are slated to deploy the Rubin platform as well. In addition, Nvidia plans on delivering its AI chips on an “annual cadence,” instead of a two-year cycle, giving the largest tech companies more options to build out their new data centers to chase AI development. 

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(Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images))

However, Huang made no mention of the technology ever porting over to the consumer-side. Old rumors that Nvidia has been preparing enhanced “Super” editions of the RTX 5000 graphics cards didn’t materialize either. That’s surprising since the company usually uses CES, a major electronics trade show in Las Vegas, to tout new gaming GPUs for desktop and laptops.

The company did tell PCMag that Huang’s speech would be about AI and enterprise. But if you were a gamer who tuned in hoping for some PC-related news, you’d be disappointed.

Naturally, we can’t help but wonder if Nvidia has been forced to revise its gaming GPU plans. In a bad sign for PC building, the AI data center demand has created a serious shortage for memory chips, which is raising concerns about GPU supplies. The same shortage is already causing consumer DDR5 RAM and SSD storage to jump in price and is expected to inflate costs for completed consumer electronics too, including PCs and phones.

Still, Nvidia is preparing a live stream tonight at 9 p.m. PST on YouTube and Twitch that’s slated to offer some consumer-focused announcements related to the GeForce brand. So stay tuned for our coverage. However, Nvidia cautioned in a tweet: “No new GPUs will be announced.”

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Michael Kan

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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.

Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. Earlier this year, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how President Trump’s tariffs will affect the industry. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

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