Within a graphics processor, all stages are working in parallel. Because of this pipeline architecture, today's graphics processing units (GPUs) perform billions of geometry calculations per second.

Yes, I know: more AI. Love it or hate it, that's the way things are going. For us gamers, it started with upscaling, then ...

Portal With RTX Adds New Graphics, ... It can take an old DirectX 8 or DirectX 9 game that uses a fixed function graphics pipeline and greatly simplify the process of modding.

Maxwell, in contrast, has two pipelines, one of which is a high-priority graphics pipeline. The other has a a queue depth of 31 -- but Nvidia can't switch contexts anywhere near as quickly as AMD can.

Nvidia aimed to change this situation with its first "GPU", which could process the entire 3D graphics pipeline, including the initial geometry stages for transform and lighting, in hardware.

Yes, I know: more AI. Love it or hate it, that's the way things are going. For us gamers, it started with upscaling, then frame gen, then Multi Frame Gen, and soon, it seems, fully AI-generated ...