SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA / RankWire.AI / – Nvidia has agreed to acquire Hugging Face in a transaction valued at about $12.93 billion. The companies signed the definitive agreement on September 2, 2026. Nvidia will pay about $11.9 billion to Hugging Face stockholders, subject to customary adjustments. The package also includes up to about $1 billion in equity-based retention awards for eligible employees. The companies expect the transaction to close in the first half of 2027 after required approvals.
Hugging Face operates a major platform for artificial intelligence models, datasets, software libraries and developer applications. Nvidia states that more than 18 million developers, researchers, and creators use the service. The platform hosts over 3 million models and approximately 500,000 datasets. It also offers access to more than 1 million applications used for artificial intelligence development. Over 200,000 companies rely on Hugging Face services to discover, test, customize, and deploy AI systems across different computing environments.
Both companies have stated that Hugging Face will continue to support multiple models, frameworks, cloud services, and hardware platforms following the acquisition. Developers will not be required to use Nvidia hardware to utilize the platform. Hugging Face will persist in supporting open-source and open-weight models from various providers. Its services will also maintain compatibility with multiple cloud environments and accelerator technologies. Nvidia indicated that the platform will keep supporting silicon vendors beyond its own products under commitments linked to the transaction.
Open AI platform commitments remain in place
Founded in 2016 by Clément Delangue, Julien Chaumond, and Thomas Wolf, Hugging Face later expanded its offerings across model hosting, datasets, developer libraries, and cloud-based artificial intelligence tools. The company achieved a valuation of $4.5 billion during an August 2023 funding round, raising $235 million from technology investors. Prior to the acquisition, Nvidia and Hugging Face collaborated on projects that connected developers with Nvidia computing infrastructure and software tools.
Nvidia disclosed the deal in a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2026. The filing confirms that the agreement remains pending and has not yet closed. Finalization depends on regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Nvidia also outlined operational commitments concerning Hugging Face after the deal, including ongoing access to models and datasets, multi-cloud support, and compatibility with hardware from other semiconductor companies.
Nvidia anticipates completion in the first half of 2027
Nvidia already has a significant presence within the Hugging Face developer community. The company reports publishing more than 500 models and over 250 open datasets on the platform. It also supplies software libraries and development tools that users can adapt for their artificial intelligence projects. Hugging Face supports model discovery, evaluation, customization, and deployment, serving companies, research teams, and individual developers involved in machine learning, generative AI, and other artificial intelligence applications.
The $12.93 billion Nvidia acquisition of Hugging Face will remain subject to review until all conditions for closing are met. Nvidia predicts the transaction will conclude during the first half of 2027. Under the announced commitments, Hugging Face will continue to support developers working with various models, cloud platforms, frameworks, and computing hardware. The platform will also maintain its multi-cloud and multi-accelerator approach. Until the deal is finalized, Nvidia and Hugging Face continue to operate as separate entities under the terms of the signed agreement.