diff --git a/apps/api/test/rooms.test.ts b/apps/api/test/rooms.test.ts
index a182ca7e..1b632714 100644
--- a/apps/api/test/rooms.test.ts
+++ b/apps/api/test/rooms.test.ts
@@ -166,6 +166,24 @@ describe('POST /box on a chosen GPU', () => {
 		expect(box.gpuPciId).toBeNull();
 	});
 
+	test('a fleet room is found by the name a client shows, without the vendor', async () => {
+		await fleet([[V710]]);
+		const p = await person('fleet-short-name', 'paid');
+		const res = await post(p.headers, { on: 'fleet', model: 'Radeon Pro V710' });
+		expect(res.status).toBe(201);
+		expect((await json(res)).data.gpuPciId).toBe(V710.pciId);
+	});
+
+	test('a box is named by the card it is pinned to, not its host\'s first card', async () => {
+		const p = await person('pinned-name');
+		const host = await Fixtures.machine(p.owner, 'two-cards');
+		await Machine.setGpus({ id: host, gpus: [BIG, V710] });
+		const res = await post(p.headers, { on: 'own', machineId: host, pciId: V710.pciId });
+		expect(res.status).toBe(201);
+		const listed = (await json(await app.request('/box', { headers: p.headers }))).data;
+		expect(listed.find((b: { machineId: string }) => b.machineId === host).gpu).toBe(V710.model);
+	});
+
 	test('a fleet room is placed by model on the least-loaded machine with one free', async () => {
 		const f = await fleet([[V710], [V710]]);
 		const a = await person('fleet-model-a');
diff --git a/packages/core/src/billing/checkout-room.ts b/packages/core/src/billing/checkout-room.ts
index 8d3b6030..858f207b 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/billing/checkout-room.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/billing/checkout-room.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ export namespace CheckoutRoom {
 
 	/** Refuse a model the fleet does not have. */
 	export async function assertKnown(model: string): Promise<void> {
-		if (!(await knownModels()).includes(model)) {
+		if (!(await knownModels()).some((m) => Rooms.sameModel(m, model))) {
 			throw new VisibleError(
 				'validation',
 				ErrorCodes.Validation.INVALID_PARAMETER,
@@ -54,9 +54,10 @@ export namespace CheckoutRoom {
 		cards: readonly Placement.Card[]
 	): { model: string; substituted: boolean } | null {
 		const free = cards.filter((c) => c.free);
-		if (free.some((c) => c.model === requested)) return { model: requested, substituted: false };
+		const exact = free.find((c) => Rooms.sameModel(c.model, requested));
+		if (exact) return { model: exact.model, substituted: false };
 		if (free.length === 0) return null;
-		const wanted = cards.find((c) => c.model === requested);
+		const wanted = cards.find((c) => Rooms.sameModel(c.model, requested));
 		const wantedVendor = wanted ? vendor(wanted.pciId) : '';
 		const wantedVram = wanted?.vramMib ?? 0;
 		const rank = (c: Placement.Card) => [
diff --git a/packages/core/src/billing/rooms.ts b/packages/core/src/billing/rooms.ts
index 07626ba6..e9579685 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/billing/rooms.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/billing/rooms.ts
@@ -32,6 +32,24 @@ export namespace Rooms {
 		return entryModels().some((m) => name.includes(m.toLowerCase()));
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * A card's name without the vendor: clients show `RTX 3060` and
+	 * `Radeon RX 9060 XT`, hosts report `NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060` and
+	 * `AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT`.
+	 */
+	export function bareModel(model: string): string {
+		let m = model.trim();
+		for (const prefix of ['NVIDIA ', 'GeForce ', 'AMD ', 'Intel(R) ', 'Intel ']) {
+			if (m.toLowerCase().startsWith(prefix.toLowerCase())) m = m.slice(prefix.length);
+		}
+		return m.toLowerCase();
+	}
+
+	/** Whether two names are one card, with or without the vendor. */
+	export function sameModel(a: string, b: string): boolean {
+		return bareModel(a) === bareModel(b);
+	}
+
 	export function isPro(plan: string | null | undefined): boolean {
 		return plan === 'paid';
 	}
diff --git a/packages/core/src/box/index.ts b/packages/core/src/box/index.ts
index 2e8a2031..03deff9e 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/box/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/box/index.ts
@@ -177,7 +177,7 @@ export namespace Box {
 				.orderBy(BoxTable.timeCreated)
 				.then((rows) =>
 					rows.map((r) =>
-						serialize(r.box, Machine.gpuName(r.gpus), {
+						serialize(r.box, Machine.pinnedName(r.gpus, r.box), {
 							host: r.host,
 							fleet: r.organisationId !== null
 						})
diff --git a/packages/core/src/box/placement.ts b/packages/core/src/box/placement.ts
index d84526f5..17458666 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/box/placement.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/box/placement.ts
@@ -338,7 +338,9 @@ export namespace Placement {
 	export const onFleetModel =
 		(model: string): Placer =>
 		async () => {
-			const free = (await lockedFreeCards(fleetOrganisation())).filter((c) => c.model === model);
+			const free = (await lockedFreeCards(fleetOrganisation())).filter((c) =>
+				Rooms.sameModel(c.model, model)
+			);
 			if (free.length === 0) {
 				throw new VisibleError(
 					'rate_limit',
diff --git a/packages/core/src/machine/index.ts b/packages/core/src/machine/index.ts
index 04cebeb3..246b4a95 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/machine/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/machine/index.ts
@@ -85,6 +85,20 @@ export namespace Machine {
 		return gpus?.[0]?.model ?? null;
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * The card a box is pinned to, by its slot, else its PCI id; the host's
+	 * first card for a box that names none.
+	 */
+	export function pinnedName(
+		gpus: readonly { model: string; pciId: string; slot?: string }[] | null | undefined,
+		pin: { gpuPciId?: string | null; gpuSlot?: string | null }
+	): string | null {
+		const card =
+			(pin.gpuSlot ? gpus?.find((g) => g.slot === pin.gpuSlot) : undefined) ??
+			(pin.gpuPciId ? gpus?.find((g) => g.pciId === pin.gpuPciId) : undefined);
+		return card?.model ?? gpuName(gpus);
+	}
+
 	export const Info = z
 		.object({
 			id: z.string().meta({