NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 5090 “GB202” Chip Identified as Defective in Certain Market Units; All Models Possibly Impacted

Reports are surfacing that NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs are encountering problems, with the “Blackwell” GB202 chip potentially being defective in many units.

NVIDIA’s Leading RTX Blackwell GPU Struggles with Missing ROPs; Speculations Suggest GB202 Chip Issues

In the world of gaming, it’s always a battle to catch a break when it comes to GPUs. Initially, enthusiasts faced stock shortages for NVIDIA’s top-of-the-line RTX Blackwell models, which appeared in limited quantities. Now, it seems Team Green is dealing with another snag, as certain models are showing performance hits due to defective silicon. Just recently, we highlighted a ZOTAC GeForce RTX 5090 grappling with this issue. According to insights from @MEGAsizeGPU, the heart of the problem is the Blackwell’s GB202 chip—a deep dive into that coming up next.

The root cause is the chip. A small batch of GB202 is defective, and the bios can not do anything with this issue.

— MEGAsizeGPU (@Zed__Wang) February 21, 2025

For those not in the loop, it appears the GeForce RTX 5090 is being spotted online displaying fewer ROPs in GPU-Z. Essentially, this means that any user facing this issue holds a model with decreased performance. Initially, the speculation revolved around a glitch in GPU-Z for some versions. However, the buzz now is about the flawed GB202 chip, which undoubtedly spells trouble.

Supporting these claims beyond just GPU-Z hiccups, evaluations using HWINFO also exhibited the ROP reduction in an impacted RTX 5090 variant. This indicates a more significant underlying issue. While the problem presently only affects a small portion of SKUs, it seems to stretch beyond a single AIB model. Rumors suggest even FE models might not be exempt.

So, where do we stand now? We’ve reached out to NVIDIA for any updates. Given that the troubles stem from the GB202 chip, it’s likely Team Green will offer replacements via RMA processes. Hopefully, the situation doesn’t escalate, as NVIDIA is already managing production delays for their mid-range GPU lineup due to separate performance concerns.

We urge viewers to check their models for any discrepancies in ROP count. Should it dip below 176, please let us know. At this juncture, it’s unclear if models like the GeForce RTX 5080 are affected, as the situation continues to evolve.