RGB Keyboard Software Somehow Tanking My GPU Performance?!

So this is one of the weirdest issues I’ve ever had on my rig. I recently noticed my GPU usage would randomly dip while gaming — like 99% down to 40–50% for a second — and cause visible stutters. After checking temps, power, background tasks, drivers, etc., I found the culprit: my keyboard lighting software.

I’m using a [brand name] RGB keyboard, and as soon as I close its software (or end its background process), GPU frametime stabilizes and everything runs buttery smooth again. If I relaunch it, the lag and spikes return almost instantly.

I’ve tried reinstalling, changing USB ports, disabling lighting effects, running it without admin privileges — nothing helps. I honestly can’t wrap my head around how RGB control software could mess with GPU behavior like this.

Has anyone else seen RGB utilities conflicting with GPU drivers or DirectX overlays? Is there some hidden hardware polling or overlay issue happening in the background?