In this pioneering work, authors propose a minimal ISA extension to the RISC-V architecture to support general-purpose GPUs and 3D graphics. The extension aims to facilitate easier integration and sustainable ecosystem development. Highlights include:

• Development of the Vortex, a PCIe-based soft GPU.
• Implementation on an Altera Stratix 10 FPGA, scaling up to 32 cores.
• Offering a performance peak of 25.6 GFlops at 200 Mhz. This initiative could significantly simplify the deployment of GPU capabilities on the RISC-V architecture, enhancing accessibility and fostering innovation in applications like machine learning and graphics processing. This paper is crucial for its potential to democratize GPU infrastructure, making powerful computation more accessible and stimulating further research in hardware acceleration.