DLSS 5 haters are ‘completely wrong’, says Nvidia’s CEO
Nvidia’s Jensen Huang has clapped back at DLSS 5 skeptics
🤫 Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang dismissed critics of DLSS 5, stating they are “completely wrong” about the technology
😡 Critics often view DLSS 5 as a mere AI “beautification filter” that undermines artistic intent in games
🙂↔️ Huang clarified that DLSS 5 is “content-control generative AI” or “neural rendering,” fusing geometry and texture control with generative AI
🫵 He asserted that developers maintain “direct control” to fine-tune the AI to match their specific artistic style, distinguishing it from simple post-processing
The fallout over Nvidia’s DLSS 5 AI model, which drastically transforms the look of existing games by introducing almost photorealistic lighting, has been nuclear, to say the least. And like all controversial subjects, it seems like there’s only two sides you can be on: either you hate it with a passion, or you believe it’s the future of gaming.
Obviously, everyone’s entitled to an opinion, but that hasn’t stopped Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang from bluntly stating that some detractors are “completely wrong” about DLSS 5.
At a press Q&A with Tom’s Hardware at GTC 2026, Huang clapped back at those who believe DLSS 5 is simply an AI beautification filter and ruins the artists’ intent, saying:
“Well, first of all, they’re completely wrong. The reason for that is because, as I have explained very carefully, DLSS 5 fuses controllability of the geometry and textures and everything about the game with generative AI.”
Huang added that developers can “fine-tune the generative AI’ to make it match their style, and that DLSS 5 “doesn’ t change the artistic control.”
“It’s not post-processing, it’s not post-processing at the frame level, it’s generative control at the geometry level,” he also said. “All of that is in the control – direct control – of the game developer,” he said. This is very different than generative AI; it’s content-control generative AI. That’s why we call it neural rendering.”
It’s unlikely that Huang’s statements will deter those who have already made up their minds about DLSS 5, especially those who are fervently against AI. However, it does seem like Nvidia could have explained DLSS 5 better to gamers when it was first revealed, as it’s been widely ridiculed and negatively received, partly due to misconceptions about how the technology works.
It also remains to be seen whether the DLSS 5 that Nvidia has shown running in games like Resident Evil Requiem, Starfield, and EA Sports FC 26 will look as good (if that’s your interpretation) when it releases in “fall 2026”.
The demos shown were running on two Nvidia RTX 5090 GPUs, with one dedicated entirely to DLSS 5. Getting the tech running on one GPU, and one that isn’t as powerful as a RTX 5090, could prove challenging then, though a release date of later this year suggests Nvidia is confident it can pull it off.
Whether gamers will have warmed to DLSS 5 by then remains to be seen.
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Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. He also runs a retro gaming YouTube channel called Game on, boy! Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.