NVIDIA is facing a bit of a hiccup in rolling out their mid-range RTX 50 GPUs due to a chip supply shortage, which comes on the heels of overwhelming demand.
The supply chain issues surrounding NVIDIA’s RTX 50 series have led to complications in the launch process. The introduction of their flagship GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 GPUs was marked by one of the lowest SKU counts, largely because of the ongoing global semiconductor demand. Unfortunately, this bottleneck doesn’t seem to be easing anytime soon.
Notable leaker @mingchikuo has hinted that NVIDIA plans to delay the launch of its mid-range RTX 50 GPUs by about a month. This delay is intended to give the supply chain a much-needed break.
Recently, Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted about these issues, highlighting the frustration of gamers and power users eager for the RTX 5090 and 5080. Chip shortages are expected to push mass production of the RTX 5070 and 5060 from the original schedule of February/March to March/April. This limited availability is likely to lead to quick sell-outs.
Earlier today, we covered similar updates that reflect these changes, noting that the RTX 5070 is now expected to debut in early March. This delay simply stems from NVIDIA’s inability to keep up with the current demand for its consumer GPUs. If the company were to release new models, they’d quickly run out of stock, leaving consumers in another bind.
To give you some perspective on the situation, X user @kakashiii111 pointed out that Taiwan, a key market for NVIDIA, received fewer than 100 units of the RTX 5090. This trend was echoed in various regions, with retailers logging “single-digit” inventory numbers for the flagship RTX Blackwell GPU. NVIDIA is grappling with balancing supply and demand, and we anticipate it might take several months for things to stabilize.
Delaying the launch of their mid-range GPUs might actually play in NVIDIA’s favor. It could allow them to draw attention away from AMD’s RX 9070 series GPUs—assuming the release goes smoothly, which is certainly something we can only hope for. As it stands, AMD appears to have a significant opportunity to gain ground in the mainstream GPU market with its RX 9070 SKUs, as NVIDIA is currently not basking in consumer favor.
