SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA / RankWire.AI / – Nvidia has finalized a $12.93 billion deal to acquire the artificial intelligence platform Hugging Face. The firms reached the definitive agreement on September 2, 2026. Nvidia intends to pay approximately $11.9 billion to Hugging Face stockholders, subject to standard adjustments. Additionally, the transaction includes up to about $1 billion in equity-based retention awards for eligible employees. Nvidia anticipates the deal will close in the first half of 2027, pending necessary approvals and closing conditions.
Hugging Face operates one of the largest platforms dedicated to sharing artificial intelligence models, datasets, software tools, and applications. Nvidia reports that the platform reaches more than 18 million developers, researchers, and creators worldwide. It hosts more than 3 million models and around 500,000 datasets, offering access to over 1 million applications. Over 200,000 companies utilize Hugging Face services for AI development, testing, customization, and deployment across diverse computing environments.
Both companies announced that Hugging Face will continue functioning as an open platform once the transaction is finalized. Developers will still be able to choose 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 also pledged to maintain support for open-source and open-weight models created by other developers. Its services will sustain multi-cloud support, inference providers, and accelerator platforms, including hardware from other semiconductor firms.
Hugging Face to uphold open development approach
Founded in 2016 by Clément Delangue, Julien Chaumond, and Thomas Wolf, Hugging Face has grown to include model hosting, datasets, developer libraries, and cloud services for AI projects. The company reached a $4.5 billion valuation in a funding round completed in August 2023, which raised $235 million from technology investors. Prior to the acquisition, Nvidia had collaborated with Hugging Face through projects connecting developers with Nvidia’s computing resources and software via familiar Hugging Face development tools.
The agreement was disclosed by Nvidia in a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2026. The filing confirms that the acquisition is still pending and has not yet been finalized. Regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions are still required. Nvidia also outlined commitments regarding the future operations of Hugging Face, including ongoing access to models and datasets, multi-cloud support, and compatibility with hardware produced by other companies besides Nvidia.
Expected completion set for the first half of 2027
Nvidia already maintains a significant presence within the Hugging Face developer community. The company reports having published over 500 models and more than 250 open datasets on the platform. It also offers software libraries and development tools that users can adapt and incorporate into their projects. Hugging Face supports developers in various stages of AI development, including model discovery, testing, customization, and deployment. The platform additionally provides infrastructure for companies, research organizations, and independent developers building AI applications.
The acquisition of Hugging Face by Nvidia will proceed under review until all conditions are fulfilled. Nvidia anticipates completing 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 flexibility over frameworks, cloud platforms, inference providers, and hardware choices. The companies have also committed to preserving Hugging Face’s multi-cloud and multi-accelerator strategy post-acquisition.