Nvidia Acquires Hugging Face for $12.93 Billion

Nvidia has confirmed its acquisition of the open-source AI model repository Hugging Face for $12.93 billion. The deal, announced today, represents a major strategic bet by the chipmaker on the open-source AI ecosystem.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated the company plans to scale Hugging Face's platform and strengthen its infrastructure. He said the goal is to offer greater access to AI for developers and institutions. In a blog post, Huang emphasized that Hugging Face will continue its open-source mission.

"Hugging Face will continue to support open source and open weight models from across the ecosystem, from every model builder," Huang wrote. He added the platform would remain multi-cloud and multi-accelerator, allowing builders to choose their preferred hardware.

The Platform and Its Community

Hugging Face, founded in France in 2016 and now based in New York, hosts a vast repository for AI development. The platform provides tools for downloading and running AI models, datasets for training, and a collaborative community for researchers. It currently hosts three million models and is used by approximately 18 million developers.

Nvidia itself has contributed significantly to the platform, having released more than 500 AI models on it. The chipmaker was already an investor, having backed Hugging Face in a $235 million Series D funding round in 2023. That round valued the AI startup at $4.5 billion, its last known valuation before this acquisition.

Strategic Fit and Future Plans

Hugging Face co-founder Thomas Wolf called Nvidia a natural partner for the company's mission. He cited shared values in open-source development, robotics, and AI for scientific research. Wolf stated that when Huang offered CEO Clement Delangue the chance to double down on building an open and independent platform, the leadership team decided the time was right.

The acquisition is expected to be finalized in the first half of 2027. It shows Nvidia's pattern of heavy investment across the AI landscape. The company has poured billions into AI labs and startups that are major purchasers of its advanced semiconductor chips.

A Bet on Open-Source AI

The move signals Nvidia's conviction in the long-term importance of open-source AI models. Huang has been a vocal proponent of this approach. By acquiring the leading hub for such models, Nvidia positions itself at the center of a critical developer community. The deal aims to combine Nvidia's hardware expertise with Hugging Face's software platform and vast user base.

For the millions of developers on Hugging Face, Nvidia promises continued support for an open and hardware-agnostic environment. The company's stated intent is to accelerate the platform's growth without altering its foundational principles. The transaction, one of the largest in AI infrastructure, sets the stage for the next decade of collaboration between the two firms.