Reflections on the Disappointing Launch of Nvidia's RTX Series
A senior Nvidia executive recalls the rocky start of the RTX 20 series, discussing its features and the market response.
In a recent reflection, senior Nvidia VP Jeff Fisher remarked on the underwhelming launch of the RTX 20 series of graphics cards, stating, “we launched ray tracing and DLSS to a thud.” This launch, which occurred in September 2018, introduced significant technologies, yet the initial adoption showed mixed results.
Fisher attributes these rocky beginnings to the modest performance gains of the RTX 20 series compared to its predecessor, the Pascal series. When gamers activated ray tracing—one of the flagship features—it resulted in a notable decrease in frame rates, averaging a 25% drop. Meanwhile, DLSS did improve performance slightly, but not without sacrificing some image quality.
This commentary is featured in the publication The Nvidia Way: Jensen Huang and the Making of a Tech Giant by Tae Kim. It explores Nvidia’s innovations and strategies, providing insights directly from both Fisher and the company’s CEO, Jensen Huang.
The narrative also extends into the present, drawing parallels to the upcoming RTX 50 series, highlighting the consistent struggles with performance metrics and consumers’ expectations in the gaming industry.
