The deal gives Nvidia direct access to a huge community of developers who use Hugging Face to find, test, and build AI models|@huggingface|X
The chipmaker is acquiring Hugging Face, a platform for open-source AI models, in a $12.93 billion deal, the chip giant announced yesterday, expanding its AI software empire.
The deal gives Nvidia direct access to a huge community of developers who use the platform to find, test, and build AI models available for free. It also strengthens the company’s position as companies increasingly look for cheaper alternatives to expensive AI systems from OpenAI and Anthropic.
The deal could allow Nvidia to optimize Hugging Face’s offerings for its chips, analysts say, though the chipmaker said developers are free to use other hardware. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the platform will remain open, meaning developers can continue choosing different AI models, chips and cloud services.
Skeptics say the deal reflects AI’s circular financing, with giants funding their own customers and potentially fueling a bubble.
The acquisition comes as AI labs race to build chips that can challenge Nvidia. That makes Hugging Face an important strategic addition for Nvidia beyond its core chip business.
Why Hugging Face?
Unlike OpenAI and Anthropic, the AI startup lets developers download and customize AI models and provides datasets, software, and cloud tools for building applications.
Nvidia has warned against AI being controlled by a handful of labs as cheaper Chinese open-source models gain ground. Hugging Face used one, modified by Nvidia, to fend off an OpenAI cyberattack earlier this year.