Nvidia has reportedly agreed to acquire Hugging Face for $12.9 billion, in a deal that would give the US chipmaker control of one of the artificial intelligence industry’s most prominent platforms for sharing open-source models.
The Information reported that Nvidia had agreed to buy the company, citing a person familiar with the agreement, and Reuters subsequently reported the same figure. However, separate reporting indicated that negotiations had not necessarily resulted in a signed agreement, and neither Nvidia nor Hugging Face had publicly confirmed the transaction at the time of reporting.
Hugging Face has become a central part of the open AI ecosystem, providing developers with access to models, datasets, and tools, as well as services that allow customers to run models using cloud computing infrastructure. The company was valued at $4.5 billion after raising $235 million in 2023, in a round that included Nvidia alongside other technology investors.
The reported purchase would significantly expand Nvidia’s influence beyond the graphics processors that underpin much of the current AI boom. Major AI developers including Google, Amazon, and other technology groups have been working on their own chips, potentially reducing their long-term dependence on Nvidia hardware.
A strong open-model ecosystem could help Nvidia maintain demand for its chips by supporting developers that are not tied to the computing infrastructure of the largest closed AI laboratories. Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang highlighted the importance of a growing open-model ecosystem when the company reported quarterly revenue of $96.2 billion on Wednesday, more than double the level a year earlier.
The reported price represents a sharp increase from Hugging Face’s previous valuation. Reuters said the company was generating about $150 million in annual revenue, meaning the proposed acquisition would place a substantial premium on its strategic position in the AI developer ecosystem.
If completed, the acquisition would deepen an existing relationship between the companies while marking one of Nvidia’s most significant moves to secure a larger role across the software, models, and infrastructure that surround its dominant AI chip business.
