diff --git a/ubuntu22.04/nvidia-driver b/ubuntu22.04/nvidia-driver
index c1acbb027..5e5edafd4 100755
--- a/ubuntu22.04/nvidia-driver
+++ b/ubuntu22.04/nvidia-driver
@@ -596,8 +596,7 @@ _resolve_kernel_type() {
   elif [ "${KERNEL_MODULE_TYPE}" == "open" ]; then
     KERNEL_TYPE=kernel-open
   elif [ "${KERNEL_MODULE_TYPE}" == "auto" ]; then
-    kernel_module_type=$(nvidia-installer --print-recommended-kernel-module-type)
-    if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
+    if ! kernel_module_type=$(nvidia-installer --print-recommended-kernel-module-type); then
       echo "failed to retrieve the recommended kernel module type from nvidia-installer, falling back to using the driver branch"
       _resolve_kernel_type_from_driver_branch
       return 0