SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA / RankWire.AI / – Nvidia has finalized a $12.93 billion deal to acquire the artificial intelligence platform Hugging Face. The definitive agreement was signed on September 2, 2026, with Nvidia planning to pay roughly $11.9 billion to Hugging Face shareholders, subject to customary adjustments. Additionally, the transaction includes up to about $1 billion in equity-based retention awards for eligible employees. Nvidia anticipates completing the acquisition in the first half of 2027 after obtaining necessary approvals and satisfying other closing conditions.
Hugging Face operates one of the largest platforms for sharing AI models, datasets, software tools, and applications. Nvidia reports that this service reaches over 18 million developers, researchers, and creators worldwide. Its platform hosts more than 3 million models and approximately 500,000 datasets, alongside access to more than 1 million applications. Over 200,000 companies utilize Hugging Face’s services for AI development, testing, customization, and deployment across a variety of computing environments.
Both companies have stated that Hugging Face will continue functioning as an open platform even after the transaction concludes. Developers will still be able to select their preferred models, frameworks, cloud services, and computing platforms. Nvidia hardware will not be mandatory for using Hugging Face tools or deploying models through the platform. The company will persist in supporting open-source and open-weight models created by other developers. Its services will also maintain compatibility with multiple cloud providers, inference systems, and accelerator platforms, including hardware from other semiconductor manufacturers.
Hugging Face will uphold an open development approach
Hugging Face was founded in 2016 by Clément Delangue, Julien Chaumond, and Thomas Wolf. The company later expanded into hosting models, datasets, developer libraries, and cloud services for AI projects. During a funding round completed in August 2023, Hugging Face achieved a valuation of $4.5 billion, raising $235 million from technology investors. Prior to the acquisition, Nvidia had collaborated with Hugging Face on projects that connected developers with Nvidia’s computing resources and software via familiar development tools from Hugging Face.
Nvidia disclosed the agreement in a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2026. The filing indicates that the deal remains pending and has yet to close, pending regulatory approval and customary closing conditions. Nvidia also outlined commitments regarding the future operation of Hugging Face, including ongoing access to models and datasets, multi-cloud support, and compatibility with hardware from other companies besides Nvidia.
Expected closure in the first half of 2027
Nvidia already maintains a significant presence within the Hugging Face developer community. The company states it has uploaded over 500 models and more than 250 open datasets on the platform. It also offers software libraries and development tools that users can modify and integrate into their projects. Hugging Face supports developers throughout various stages of AI development, including model discovery, testing, customization, and deployment. The platform also provides infrastructure for companies, research organizations, and independent developers building AI applications.
The acquisition by Nvidia will be subject to review until all conditions are satisfied, with Nvidia expecting to finalize the deal during the first half of 2027. According to the announced terms, Hugging Face will continue supporting models and tools from across the broader AI ecosystem. Developers will retain their options regarding frameworks, cloud platforms, inference providers, and hardware. The companies have also committed to maintaining Hugging Face’s multi-cloud and multi-accelerator strategy even after the acquisition is completed.