NVIDIA Introduces 'Smooth Motion': AI-Powered Frame Generation for RTX 50 Series GPUs

NVIDIA Unveils Smooth Motion: AI-Powered Frame Generation

NVIDIA has quietly introduced a new feature called "Smooth Motion," a driver-level AI model designed to enhance gameplay performance on their latest RTX 50 Series GPUs. This technology aims to deliver smoother gameplay by generating an additional frame between two rendered frames, effectively doubling the perceived frame rate in many scenarios 1

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How Smooth Motion Works

Smooth Motion is a driver-based frame generation technique that works with DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 games, even those without native DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) or frame generation support. This feature interpolates one AI-generated frame between every two traditionally rendered frames, potentially increasing frame rates significantly 1

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Compatibility and Activation

Currently, Smooth Motion is exclusive to NVIDIA's RTX 5080 and 5090 GPUs. Users can enable this feature through the NVIDIA App (version 11.0.2.312 or later) by navigating to Graphics > Driver Settings for individual programs or global settings. Activating or deactivating Smooth Motion requires a game restart 1

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Performance Improvements

Early testing on a pre-release build of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 showed promising results:

• At 4K resolution with DLSS quality mode, Smooth Motion increased the average output frame rate from 83.3 fps to 135 fps, a 62% improvement 1

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• Capping the frame rate at 120 fps and enabling variable refresh rate resulted in smoother frame times while reducing the rendered frame rate to 60 fps 1

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Limitations and Artifacts

While Smooth Motion offers significant performance gains, it does have some limitations:

• More noticeable artifacts compared to native frame generation implementations due to uniform application of interpolation 1

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• Potential distortion of interface elements like subtitles in AI-generated frames 1

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• Visual flaws may become more pronounced in certain scenarios, such as 30 fps cutscenes interpolated to 60 fps 1

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Comparison to AMD's Technology

Smooth Motion appears to be NVIDIA's answer to AMD's Fluid Motion Frames, offering similar driver-level frame generation capabilities. However, NVIDIA's implementation leverages a full-fledged AI model, aligning with the company's focus on artificial intelligence 2

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Future Developments

NVIDIA plans to extend Smooth Motion functionality to RTX 40 series GPUs in a future update, potentially broadening its user base 1

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. As more RTX 50 series GPUs reach consumers, we can expect more comprehensive testing and user feedback on this new technology 1

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Additional NVIDIA Updates

Alongside Smooth Motion, NVIDIA's recent driver update introduced several other enhancements:

• DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation support for 75 games and apps 2

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• Improvements to RTX Video Super Resolution, including HDR video upscaling and more efficient resource usage 2

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• New GPU Utilisation feature for RTX video when Quality is set to Auto 2

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These updates demonstrate NVIDIA's ongoing commitment to improving gaming performance and visual quality through AI-powered technologies.