I think the main difference is before they would go

kernel patch -> own repo -> (own distro and PR to mainline Linux) -> other distros

now they're gonna go

kernel patch -> OGC repo -> (OGC distros and PR to mainline Linux) -> other distros

and that means there will be way more code reviewers and testers (and more automated testing?) happening before release

and these things being merged together earlier also makes it easier, especially since I imagine the mainline Linux is pretty slow to accept gaming-related patches