A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialized electronic circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images. GPUs were originally used to accelerate texture mapping and rendering polygons for 3D graphics. Over time, GPUs have evolved to support general purpose computing using a model known as GPGPU. Major GPU manufacturers include Nvidia, AMD, and Intel, with Nvidia and AMD dominating the discrete graphics market. Key innovations included Nvidia's GeForce 256 which introduced hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, and AMD's Radeon 9700 which supported Direct3D 9.0. Modern high-performance GPUs interface via the PCIe bus and utilize technologies such as GDDR5 memory and