rtx 4090

5 articles · newest first

A high-end multi-GPU AI workstation build

the local AI workstation that runs 70B models: the ~$3,500 build, and the smarter way to spend it

To run a 70-billion-parameter model at home you need ~48GB of VRAM. Here's the build that gets you there — and why two cheaper cards beat one expensive one.

Ravi Malhotra · Jul 30 · 9 min

A cloud GPU workstation for fine-tuning AI models

the best cloud GPU for fine-tuning an LLM costs about a dollar — here's the one to rent and why

Fine-tuning sounds expensive until you realize you can rent the perfect GPU for it by the hour. For small models a 4090 does it for pennies; for bigger jobs an A100 is the workhorse. Here's the cheapest path.

Lena Fischer · Jul 28 · 9 min

Two NVIDIA graphics cards, representing a dual-GPU build for Llama 70B

the honest answer to 'what GPU runs Llama 70B': not the one you were about to buy

Llama 70B needs about 40GB of VRAM to run well — and almost no single consumer card has it. Here's what actually works, visualized, with the measured speeds and real costs for each path.

Ravi Malhotra · Jul 23 · 10 min

the RTX 5080 is newer, faster on paper, and the wrong pick for local AI. here's the 8GB reason why

Blackwell versus the old flagship, and for once the newer card loses. The 5080's 16GB caps what you can run; the 4090's 24GB doesn't. For local models, capacity beats the spec sheet — with the measured numbers to prove it.

Ravi Malhotra · Jul 22 · 9 min

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition graphics card

The 4090 is 34% faster for local AI. Your electricity meter can't tell them apart

Measured llama.cpp numbers say the 4090 wins every speed test and costs twice as much — while energy per generated token is a dead heat. Here's who each card is actually for.

Ravi Malhotra · Jul 22 · 9 min