SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA / RankWire.AI / – Nvidia has finalized a $12.93 billion agreement to acquire the artificial intelligence platform Hugging Face. The deal was formalized on September 2, 2026, with Nvidia set to pay approximately $11.9 billion to Hugging Face shareholders, subject to usual adjustments. Additionally, the transaction includes the potential for around $1 billion in equity-based retention awards for eligible employees. Nvidia anticipates completing the acquisition in the first half of 2027, pending necessary approvals and other closing requirements.
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 over 18 million developers, researchers, and creators worldwide. It hosts more than 3 million models, roughly 500,000 datasets, and provides access to over 1 million applications. More than 200,000 companies utilize Hugging Face’s services for AI development, evaluation, customization, and deployment across various computing environments.
Following the transaction, Hugging Face will continue functioning as an open platform. Developers will still have the freedom to select their preferred models, frameworks, cloud services, and computing platforms. Nvidia hardware will not be required for using Hugging Face tools or deploying models via the platform. The company will also persist in supporting open-source and open-weight models created by external developers. Its services will maintain multi-cloud support, compatibility with inference providers, and hardware accelerators from other semiconductor firms.
Hugging Face to Maintain Open Development Framework
Founded in 2016 by Clément Delangue, Julien Chaumond, and Thomas Wolf, Hugging Face has grown into a provider of model hosting, datasets, developer libraries, and cloud services tailored for AI projects. The company achieved a valuation of $4.5 billion in a funding round completed in August 2023, which secured $235 million from technology investors. Prior to the acquisition, Nvidia collaborated with Hugging Face through projects connecting developers to Nvidia’s computing resources and software, leveraging familiar Hugging Face development tools.
Nvidia disclosed the agreement in a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2026. The filing confirms that the deal is still pending and has not yet been finalized. It remains contingent upon regulatory approvals and typical closing conditions. Nvidia also outlined commitments regarding Hugging Face’s ongoing operations, including continued access to models and datasets, multi-cloud support, and compatibility with hardware from companies other than Nvidia.
Expected Completion in the First Half of 2027
Nvidia already has a significant presence within the Hugging Face developer community. The company states it has published over 500 models and more than 250 open datasets on the platform. Nvidia also offers software libraries and development tools that users can modify and incorporate into their own projects. Hugging Face supports developers through various stages of AI development, including model discovery, testing, customization, and deployment. Its infrastructure is designed to assist companies, research organizations, and independent developers building AI applications.
The acquisition will proceed once all required conditions are satisfied, with Nvidia estimating a completion during the first half of 2027. Under the agreed terms, Hugging Face will continue supporting models and tools from the broader AI ecosystem. Developers will retain their options regarding frameworks, cloud platforms, inference providers, and hardware. Both companies have committed to maintaining Hugging Face’s multi-cloud and multi-accelerator strategy after the transaction is finalized.