Nvidia squeezes the AIBs on margins. They restrict the MSRP range that AIBs can sell at, which limits the quality and engineering work that AIBs can put into their cards. The AIBs get a pretty slim profit after accounting for the cost of the GPU dies to them, plus Nvidia’s profit margin on the die, which Nvidia doesn’t incur on their own FE cards.

This, as well as a whole bunch of other reasons, is a big factor in why AIBs have been unhappy with Nvidia, and why EVGA decided to quit its GPU business. Gamers Nexus did a bunch of comprehensive interviews, and it’s well worth a watch.