NVIDIA RTX 5080 before 5090, claims Kopite7kimi

Respected NVIDIA hardware leaker responds to dubious reports of RTX 50 launch schedule.

Nothing is set in stone yet, and it is unlikely to be confirmed by anyone at this point, but one thing is certain: when it comes to NVIDIA GPU leaks, Kopite7kimi seems to be one of the most reliable sources. The leaker has responded to claims that the RTX 5090 graphics card could be the only model launching this year. These reports have no basis and technically make no sense, but Kopite wants to set the record straight.

According to the leaker, the GeForce RTX 5080 should actually appear before the RTX 5090, the supposed next-gen flagship GPU based on the Blackwell architecture. Contrary to the reports that the RTX 5090 would be the only SKU launching this year, it would actually be released after the RTX 5080.

NVIDIA has not made any formal comments on the next-gen gaming GPU architecture yet, but the company did announce its data-center Blackwell series, expected to hit the market this year. The company made a similar set of announcements in 2022 when Hopper was later accompanied by the gaming architecture known as Ada Lovelace. In the RTX 50 case, both product segments are powered by the same architecture, although designed for entirely two different market segments.

The RTX 5080 graphics card is expected to feature GB203 GPU, a successor to AD103 which could offer up to 96 SMs (possibly 12288 CUDA cores). The GPU would be offered alongside GB202, which is the flagship gaming Blackwell said to feature twice as many cores. Given the large gap between both GPUs, NVIDIA could just as well use GB202 for both of the high-end RTX 50 models. Hopefully, this will be clarified closer to launch, which is probably in the fourth quarter.

Source: Kopite7kimi