Nvidia probably could sell cards directly now, given the strength of their reputation (and the reality backing it up) for graphics, crypto, and AI. However, the

Nvidia probably could sell cards directly now, given the strength of their reputation (and the reality backing it up) for graphics, crypto, and AI. However, they grew up as a company that sold through manufacturing and channel partners and that's pretty deeply engrained in their culture. Apple is unusually obsessed with integration, most companies are more like Nvidia.