Nvidia's RTX 5090 GPUs with blower-style coolers appear in China — design optimizes Nvidia's fastest gaming GPUs for use in AI workloads

A blower-style version of the RTX 5090 GPU has emerged online courtesy of hardware leaker Olrak20_ on X (formerly Twitter). The photos, which seem to be from a facility in China, show multiple units of the GPU packed in boxes and ready for shipment. Curiously, the GPU has a serial number sticker which mentions ‘RTX5090 32G D7 Turbo’, suggesting that the GPU in question is not the RTX 5090D, officially meant for the Chinese market.

To date, Nvidia partners have not announced any blower-style variant of the RTX 5090. A blower-style GPU includes a single fan to draw in air, and hot air is exhausted from the back of the case. This makes it suitable for systems with limited space and servers, workstations, or multi-GPU setups where managing internal heat is important. Unlike open-air cooled GPUs that tend to recirculate warm air inside the case, blower cards can help lower ambient temperatures by removing all the hot air.

Last month, a similar-looking blower-style RTX 5090D was spotted on Chinese video platform Bilibili. It featured a two-slot design, a rear-mounted 16-pin power connector, and a large open section at the bottom. The video also validated that it included the GB202 chip paired with 32 GB of GDDR7 VRAM. This new leak, however, feels less official and more like an opportunistic offshoot.

The RTX 5090 can draw up to 575W of power, which means a blower cooler may struggle to handle such high thermal output levels without throttling or excessive noise. While that raises doubts about the card’s thermal capability, there’s a chance that these GPUs are meant for an AI (Artificial Intelligence) training or an enterprise setup.

It is also important to note that the GPU and the boxes do not have branding, which further suggests that they might be gray-market or unauthorized units that originated through unofficial or illicit channels. Recently, the U.S. government requested that the Malaysian trade minister tighten security and monitor tech exports to China to crack down on chip smugglers.

Nvidia has not commented on the images or confirmed any such SKU in development. Until the company or a board partner offers a statement, the origin and legitimacy of these blower-style RTX 5090 units remain unclear. Whether they are engineering samples, modified OEM hardware, or originating from unauthorized supply chains, the appearance of such GPUs raises doubts over supply chain security and the growing demand for high-performance GPUs in China.

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