Nvidia has agreed to acquire Hugging Face, a platform where open-source artificial intelligence models, datasets and tools are shared, for $12.93 billion. Founded in 2016, the platform allows developers to share their projects and is described as the “GitHub” of artificial intelligence because of its open-source machine learning library.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the acquisition would strengthen Hugging Face’s infrastructure and expand access to the platform for developers and institutions around the world. Huang stated that the platform would remain open, allowing users to choose the models, frameworks, cloud and inference service providers, and computing platforms they want. He said Nvidia hardware would not be mandatory for development or deployment through Hugging Face.
The possibility of an acquisition came to light on August 23rd, when Business Insider reported that the startup was working with a bank to explore sale options worth $13 billion. On August 27th, it was reported that talks were being held with Nvidia, while The Information claimed that an agreement worth $12.9 billion had been reached. Nvidia has now made its intention public.
Hugging Face’s official valuation following its 2023 funding round was $4.5 billion; Nvidia had participated in the round. The company rejected a $500 million investment offer last year. Hugging Face’s annualized revenue stands at approximately $150 million. The acquisition is being viewed as part of Nvidia’s strategy to strengthen its position in the open-source artificial intelligence ecosystem and maintain its dominance in AI chips.
Why it matters
This step points to Nvidia’s efforts to strengthen its ties not only to AI chips, but also to the open-source layer where models, datasets, and development tools are shared. The statement that Hugging Face will remain open and that different hardware, cloud, and inference options can be used means that developers and organizations on the platform will retain their choice of access. At the same time, how the platform will maintain its perception of neutrality under Nvidia’s ownership and to what extent its open-source approach will be preserved in practice are among the questions awaiting answers. The agreement also shows the level that the commercial value assigned to open-source AI infrastructure has reached, given the difference between Hugging Face’s official valuation and the acquisition price.
Background
Nvidia is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 16 articles mentioning the name in the last 90 days; the most recent is dated September 5, 2026.
Term: open source
Open source means that a software program’s source code is publicly available and that its license permits inspection, modification, and redistribution; it is not the same as being free of charge.