NVIDIA's DLSS Adoption Soars: Over 80% of GeForce RTX Users Embrace AI Upscaling

NVIDIA Reveals 80% Adoption of DLSS Among GeForce RTX Gamers

AI-based upscaling solutions such as NVIDIA's Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS), AMD's FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR), and Intel's Xe Super Sampling (XeSS) have become integral tools in the modern gaming landscape. These technologies are engineered to improve graphical fidelity and frame rates, even on hardware that may not be the most powerful. By utilizing AI and machine learning techniques, these upscaling solutions render games at a lower resolution and then upscale them to meet higher resolution targets. This method helps achieve smoother gameplay without the need for high-end GPUs. The usefulness of these approaches has been validated by user adoption; for instance, during an NVIDIA event, data indicated that more than 80% of GeForce RTX users are already employing DLSS technology in their gaming setups. The introduction of the RTX 50 series by NVIDIA underlines continued advancements in AI upscaling technology. Specifically, improvements in DLSS 4 promise substantial enhancements in both performance and image quality. NVIDIA has made claims regarding the GeForce RTX 5070, suggesting that through the efficient implementation of DLSS 4, this card could potentially perform on par with previous high-tier models such as the RTX 4090. This level of optimization emphasizes how AI-powered upscaling has evolved to reduce the gap between different levels of hardware while maintaining high fidelity and performance metrics. The ability to achieve such parity indicates a significant technological progression, and it suggests that future gaming hardware can be optimized more efficiently with these algorithms. By reducing the strain on hardware while maintaining image quality, DLSS contributes to a more accessible high-definition gaming experience across a variety of system configurations. Despite the strong adoption rates, AI upscaling solutions like DLSS have also drawn criticism. Some members of the gaming community argue that reliance on these technologies could lead to a lack of proper game optimization for diverse hardware configurations. The concern is that developers might depend on upscaling to compensate for poor native rendering, potentially stifling efforts to tailor games to a range of devices. These concerns warrant further discussion on how upscaling technologies should be implemented without compromising the long-term quality and performance of games. Nonetheless, the practical benefits of using AI upscaling are evident. They allow for substantial improvements in gameplay FPS.

Nvidia says over 80% of GeForce RTX GPU owners use DLSS

A hot potato: Upscaling has become a topic of contention since Nvidia and AMD introduced DLSS and FSR, with some users viewing the functionality as a crutch for unoptimized games. After unveiling new GPUs that rely heavily on image reconstruction and frame generation for their claimed performance gains, Nvidia revealed a data point suggesting that almost all RTX GPU users activate DLSS, meaning to indicate that upscaling has become the norm. Nvidia held a lengthy presentation at CES 2025 outlining the past and future of its DLSS neural rendering technology. One slide included a data point claiming that over 80 percent of users with RTX 20, 30, and 40 series graphics cards use DLSS on games, vindicating the company's extensive use of AI in video game rendering. While the slide does not specify how Nvidia collected the data, if accurate, it suggests that gamers have overwhelmingly embraced machine learning-based upscaling. The presentation also highlighted that over 500 games and 15 of 2024's top 20 titles support DLSS. However, it did not clarify whether most RTX 40 series owners specifically use frame generation, which is part of the DLSS suite but is a separate step than upscaling. Upscaling technologies like DLSS, FSR, and XeSS render games below a display's native resolution and use advanced techniques to reconstruct the missing pixels, significantly boosting performance. Analyses from TechSpot and other outlets demonstrate that the increased frame rates often far outweigh the minor reductions in image quality. Nvidia's newly revealed DLSS 4 aims to minimize these visual flaws even further by using GenAI transformer models. However, as games like Remnant II, Alan Wake II, and Monster Hunter Wilds now list upscaling as part of their system requirements, debate persists over whether the visual trade-offs are justified. Additionally, Nvidia is promoting frame generation, which interpolates AI-generated frames between traditionally rendered ones without reducing latency, as a key feature of its RTX 50 series cards. Nvidia's CES presentation also outlined future plans for neural rendering, which will integrate AI-assisted techniques into internal rendering pipelines instead of just resampling the final rendered frame. In the coming years, DLSS could enable games to process more detailed materials, hair, facial expressions, and other assets with minimal performance costs. Nvidia has previously argued that as performance gains from conventional rendering and semiconductor die shrinks slow down, enhancing visual detail and frame rates will increasingly depend on technologies like neural rendering and frame generation. These currently address the substantial computational demands of 4K resolution and ray tracing. Moreover, AMD's and Intel's efforts to play catch-up with Nvidia instead of providing alternative solutions further validate the growing importance of AI rendering. Team Red unveiled FSR 4 upscaling at CES, too, which mimics Nvidia's machine learning approach and achieves noticeably better results than FSR 3. Similarly, late last year, Intel introduced new GPUs that support frame generation using XeSS 2. The shift toward AI-assisted graphics will potentially require new approaches to technical analysis and benchmarking.

Over 80% of GeForce RTX owners enable DLSS when gaming

TL;DR: DLSS, introduced by NVIDIA in 2018, has evolved significantly, enhancing gaming performance and image quality through AI-powered technologies like Ray Reconstruction. Exclusive to GeForce RTX, DLSS remains a leader despite competition. With over 540 supported games, DLSS 4 introduces a new Transformer Model, further improving image quality and performance. DLSS has come a long way since NVIDIA introduced the technology alongside the GeForce RTX 20 Series in 2018. Powered by AI, DLSS Super Resolution was designed primarily to boost the performance of the brand-new real-time ray-tracing without impacting visual fidelity. After some growing pains for both DLSS and RT, DLSS Super Resolution technology quickly advanced to the point where it became a go-to tool for boosting performance when gaming in high resolutions. Fast-forward to today, DLSS has evolved to include a suite of technologies, including Ray Reconstruction, which dramatically improves ray-tracing image quality compared to native or traditional rasterized rendering. As it's exclusive to the GeForce RTX line-up, DLSS has seen the rise of competing tools and offerings - from AMD's FSR to Intel XeSS and even Sony's AI-powered PSSR technology for the PlayStation 5 Pro. It's safe to say that upscaling and Super Resolution are here to stay and that NVIDIA DLSS is still the clear leader regarding image quality. As part of its deep dive into the GeForce RTX 50 Series and new Blackwell architecture, which significantly increases GeForce's AI capabilities, the company confirmed that most GeForce RTX gamers play with DLSS enabled. With over 540 DLSS games and apps available and 15 of the top 20 PC games in 2024, including DLSS support, NVIDIA has confirmed that over 80% of GeForce RTX owners game with DLSS. This equates to over 3 billion hours of gaming with DLSS. With DLSS 4, the technology is set to improve for all GeForce RTX owners. NVIDIA has trained across hundreds of games, analyzed failures, and grew DLSS data with the DLSS supercomputer running 24/7 for over six years. With DLSS 4, the classic DLSS Super Resolution is being upgraded to a new Transformer Model that is more complex and can improve image quality. Seeing it in action at CES 2025 was immediately impressive. DLSS Performance Mode with the new Transformer Model looks as good or better than DLSS Quality Mode using the older CNN Model. Throw in Frame Generation and the new DLSS Multi Frame Generation, and that 80% figure points to technologies like DLSS becoming increasingly more important as time goes on.

NVIDIA Says DLSS Is Popular, but Is It Really?

NVIDIA recently revealed that more than 80% of RTX GPU users (from the 20, 30, and 40 series) are using DLSS in their games. This announcement comes just before the release of DLSS 4. DLSS is Deep Learning Super Sampling, a technology created by NVIDIA that uses artificial intelligence to improve image quality and performance in video games. Essentially, it upscales where it can, making a lot of games look much better than it would be by default. This makes up for frame rate issues as well as graphics. ✕ Remove Ads The initial post on Twitter/X mentions that this includes users of the older RTX 20-series cards as well. DLSS was first introduced with the RTX 20-series in 2018, and now it's getting a major update with DLSS 4, which will include new features like neural rendering and Multi-Frame Generation. Nvidia claims there are over 540 games and applications that support DLSS, including 15 of the most anticipated games for 2024. Additionally, they say that DLSS has been used for over 3 billion hours of gameplay. The high percentage shows how popular Nvidia's upscaling technology has become, but it may be more than face value. However, it's easy to question the accuracy of Nvidia's usage statistics. When you use nvidia recommended settings, it normally makes you turn on DLSS, and many games have it on by default. Basically, it's questionable how often users are actively turning DLSS on. ✕ Remove Ads The average user likely doesn't automatically know what DLSS is, which means a lot of players might not even know they're using it. The time a user may turn it off would likely be when there are issues in a game. It's pretty common to just let games run what is recommended and forget it altogether. One argument that gets brought up is that developers may recommend turning on DLSS to make up for optimization issues, but DLSS does a lot of good regardless of the game's quality. There's no strong proof that developers are skipping proper optimization in favor of relying on a high end graphics engine from NVIDIA. DLSS 4 is on the horizon, and there is clearly a market for it, as shown by the statistics NVIDIA showed. Source: Tom Warren/X

Nvidia releases stats that prove DLSS and Frame Generation are here to stay - sorry, angry gamers

AI upscaling and frame-gen are the future of gaming, whether you like it or not It should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with my work that I spend quite a bit of my free time browsing gaming- and tech-related social media. This includes r/pcmasterrace, a PC gaming community currently embroiled in a virtual civil war over a highly divisive topic: AI-powered resolution upscaling and frame-gen technology. The debate is largely focused on Nvidia's DLSS 4 and Multi Frame Generation right now (apologies to Intel and AMD, but XeSS and FSR are often left out of these conversations), with most PC gamers falling into one of two camps: 'DLSS is great' and 'DLSS is bullshit'. Well, it turns out the former camp is a lot bigger than the latter, based on new statistics released by Nvidia. DLSS use has been steadily on the rise ever since its introduction back in 2019 (in an update to Battlefield V), with Nvidia's user data now indicating that more than 80% of players with RTX GPUs turn on DLSS in their games - with some individual games sporting even higher percentages. DLSS adoption is becoming more commonplace among developers too, with more than 540 games and apps supporting it, including 15 of the top 20 most-played PC games of 2024. At the end of the day, a community like r/pcmasterrace won't be truly indicative of the wider PC gaming community: it's a gathering place for hardcore gamers and PC builders, and that sort of clientele inevitably leads to some hot-blooded discourse. Some argue that tools such as DLSS and frame-gen are a good way to squeeze extra performance from your PC, while others complain about input latency, 'fake frames', and the modern prevalence of AI in gaming. The naysayers aren't completely without justification, either; DLSS has historically run into some issues with maintaining image quality, frame blurring, and input latency - although like all emergent technologies, it's only improved with each generation. Personally? I'm on the fence about it. On the one hand, I do believe that DLSS has improved a great deal since its first iteration, and the Multi Frame Generation feature coming to the newly-announced Nvidia RTX 5000 GPUs feels a bit like dark and forbidden magic - a piece of software quadruples my framerate without me actually needing to do anything? Witchcraft! But on the other hand, there's no ignoring that there are some downsides to DLSS and frame-gen tech. While I don't subscribe to the ridiculous 'fake frames' argument I often see bandied about on Reddit - come on guys, it's not like the regular frames are being lovingly handcrafted by generations of artisanal frame-makers in a Tibetan mountain village - it's not yet a perfect tool, and there's one obvious pitfall here. As my colleague Isaiah Williams recently pointed out, DLSS 4 and Multi Frame Generation can provide some phenomenal results - but there are fears among PC gamers that this could lead to developers falling into an over-reliance on AI tech in games, particularly when it comes to the optimization of PC ports. As consoles begin to implement similar tech too - with the terribly-named PSSR landing on Sony's PS5 Pro last year and a DLSS-like feature potentially coming to the Nintendo Switch 2 - it's clear that upscaling is here to stay even before looking at Nvidia's latest stats. As the hardware demands of modern triple-A games continue to grow, there's a fear among gamers that developers will start viewing it as a band-aid for poor game optimization - while users running older hardware that doesn't support upscaling are left out in the cold. It's a legitimate fear, though I don't think we should be using it to crap all over Nvidia; DLSS and Team Green's wider gaming software suite are frankly very impressive, and the GPU giant is now consciously focused on mitigating the drawbacks of upscaling and frame-gen through generational improvements and features like the latency-reducing Reflex 2. Besides, the blame for poor optimization in PC games lies with developers and publishers - while there's an argument to be made that Nvidia is enabling this behavior, I think it's fair to say that Team Green is developing and implementing these tools purely with the goal of improving game performance. As for the argument that players with older GPUs shouldn't be left out, well... unfortunately, we all have to upgrade eventually. So next time you see a spirited argument about frame-gen on Reddit, maybe think about giving Nvidia a bit of slack. Got some pressing thoughts about this? If you've read this article all the way through then I'll bet you do. Tell me how much of a genius (or moron) I am in our shiny new TechRadar comments section below!