I've always wondered why sometimes Windows won't find a known later version of a driver.
I found this info over on MS site that supposedly explains it all. Take from it what you will. My take is it all depends on how a publisher of the driver ranks a given driver in their submission to MS as to how WU handles it. If anyone else reads is differently, I'd like your translation.
This statement applies to users like us about how WU downloads drivers.
How Windows selects a driver package for a device
docs.microsoft.com
Excerpt
In Windows 10, version 1709 and greater, Windows Update (WU) offers the best matching driver package,
which is not necessarily the most recent. The WU driver package selection process considers hardware ID, date/version, and
critical/automatic/optional category. WU prioritizes critical or automatic driver packages highest. If a matching critical/automatic driver package is not found, WU looks next for optional driver packages. As a result,
an older critical driver package of otherwise equal value takes precedence over a newer optional driver package.
Starting with Windows 10, version 2004, Windows Update (WU) automatically offers only the best automatic/critical matching driver package, searching both the computer and WU. To see matching driver packages in the optional category, go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View optional updates > Driver updates. WU still uses the same criteria to rank and select a driver.
The following applies to a developer who publishes a driver to Windows update.
To publish a driver to Windows Update, create a hardware submission and then follow the steps below.
docs.microsoft.com
Excerpt
When the destination is Windows Update, the default is
Automatic, which means that the driver is delivered automatically on upgrades and for every applicable system. If you select only the
Automatically delivered during Windows Upgrades the driver is defined as a
Dynamic Driver and is
delivered only during OS upgrades. If you select only
Automatically delivered to all applicable systems, Windows Update delivers the driver immediately to all applicable systems once it is released.
If you select
Manual in Windows 10, version 1909 or earlier, the driver is automatically delivered only if the device does not have a driver installed already or only has a generic driver.
Starting in Windows 10, version 2004, drivers with a
Manual shipping label is not automatically delivered. To access the best matching Optional/Manual driver, the user must go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View optional updates > Driver updates.
Summing it up, I think there is a disconnect between the developers and Windows update.