> You've just helped me realize that AMD and Nvidia overproduce every GPU and kill off the execution cores that don't work to reach the final fixed number (and

> You've just helped me realize that AMD and Nvidia overproduce every GPU and kill off the execution cores that don't work to reach the final fixed number (and that all GPUs probably have a few tens to hundreds of working cores that will never ever be used). That's basically the idea, but it's usually scaled down. A single GPU generation is essentially one chip design. If a single die has a defect in a particular unit, its turned/soldered off at the factory and sold as a lower end chip. Repeat until you have a chip that works. If you have a die where everything works, clock it up as much as you can, and ask a king's ransom for it. The best exception is the PS3 "Cell" CPU.[0] It had an extra 'sacrificial' processing core. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cell_(microprocessor)#Commercialization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cell_(microprocessor)#Commerci...