Intern wins RTX 5060 – employer demands it back and sparks backlash

An unusual dispute is making headlines in China: an intern won a GeForce RTX 5060 at an Nvidia roadshow in Suzhou – and his employer demanded that he hand over the prize. According to Chinese reports, the incident happened on November 14 during an official Nvidia event the intern attended on behalf of his company. The company’s name remains unknown.

The (un)lucky intern won the prize in a stamp-collecting contest designed for on-site visitors. Reports say he took part during his breaks, without any instructions from his employer. In the end, he claimed the top prize: a GeForce RTX 5060 worth 3,000 yuan – a mid-range GPU currently selling for around $320 on Amazon.

However, the excitement over the win didn’t last long. The intern’s employer claimed the graphics card belonged to the company, arguing that travel expenses and attendance at the event were business-related. They reportedly saw the prize as "income from work performance" rather than a personal, random win. According to sources, the intern was indirectly threatened with having "no future at the company" if he didn’t hand over the GPU. He then resigned and kept the graphics card.

The incident has now made its way to Reddit, where it’s being discussed in the r/pcmasterrace subreddit. The community clearly sides with the intern, calling the company’s behavior unprofessional and highly questionable – especially considering the relatively small amount of money involved: 3,000 yuan, or about $415. One widely noted comment also offers a different perspective.

According to Reddit user u/MagicZhang, a colleague initially suggested selling the GPU and splitting the money. After the intern declined, the matter was reportedly escalated to the company’s finance department. While the exact details remain unconfirmed, the incident leaves a bitter impression: it seems a graphics card meant more to the company than one of its own employees – even if he was “just” an intern.