MSI has officially announced that it will not be producing graphics cards based on AMD's latest RDNA 4 architecture. This means that they will not be part of the Radeon RX 9000 series lineup. In a statement to Tom's Hardware, a representative from MSI mentioned that the company is taking a break from manufacturing AMD GPUs for this generation, but they are open to future collaborations. During the RDNA 2 generation, MSI produced 45 different models, but for RDNA 3, they only released four custom designs, which is a significant 91% decrease in AMD SKU variety. The limited RDNA 3 offerings, such as the RX 7900 XTX, reused cooling solutions from previous AMD cards, indicating less focus on research and development compared to their NVIDIA lineup.
There are several reasons behind MSI's decision to move away from AMD-based solutions. NVIDIA's market dominance, with an 83% share according to Steam hardware surveys, offers partners a better return on investment. EVGA's departure from the GPU market in 2022 also created an opportunity for MSI to strengthen its position as a top NVIDIA partner. Delays in finalizing the pricing for the RX 9000 series made it challenging for manufacturers to plan production and shipments. This move by MSI opens up possibilities for other companies like Acer, who have been expanding their AMD graphics card offerings. However, MSI's choice may alienate AMD enthusiasts, despite the anticipated demand for the Radeon RX 9070 series. It remains to be seen if this decision is a permanent strategic shift or a temporary response to market conditions. AMD is planning to re-enter the high-end GPU market with their UDNA generation, so we will have to wait and see if MSI decides to re-enter the AMD market. For AIBs, partnerships with GPU manufacturers are crucial for R&D support. Once these partnerships are paused, it can be challenging to restart the process.
