Building GPUs on newer nodes may mean a completely different thing:
- you can increase somewhat the speed (frequency and amount of transistors) and decrease the energy consumption
- or you can just forget the energy consumption and just increase the speed/ transistors up to the top until the tech cannot increase anymore. Basically speed over all.
Now, the desktop space (= gamers) showed Nvidia, AMD and Intel, that the most important thing are framerates. If the card pulls 1 kW and costs 2000€, that is secondary and it will sell. So why focus on energy consumption if the buyers really don't care? Those that do mining or AI or military interests using those cards to do the heavy lifting, also don't care about energy consumption.
Conclusion: brands follow the money and if those with money just care about speed, then that's it. And the connector was meant as a quick patch and the (bad) result is there. The engineers, the certification association and brands are guilty for just caring for money and speed. If they had tested it out correctly, that would never happen as they also would control hard what the Chinese connector manufacturers are (not) doing.
Dangerous...