Nvidia’s investment in Intel coudl have far-reaching negative consequences. To begin with, Nvidia has every incentive to eliminate Intel’s Arc graphics line, which would be disastrous for consumers because Arc is the only product helping to bring GPU prices down. Without it, Nvidia would face less competition and prices could climb.
The loss of Intel’s graphics division would also harm Linux users. Intel’s approach to open, well-documented drivers has made their GPUs the most compatible and reliable option for Linux systems, while Nvidia has a history of being unfriendly toward open-source drivers. If Intel’s efforts end, Linux users will face fewer choices and greater difficulties.
Finally, Intel is currently the only company offering consumer-grade graphics virtualization through SR-IOV. If that disappears, Nvidia’s enterprise-level chips would dominate the market. This would mean ordinary consumers would be left with less performance, less flexibility, and weaker security on their personal computers.