Key facts
- Nvidia is acquiring AI software platform Hugging Face for $13 billion.
- The acquisition aims to expand Nvidia's AI software reach and bolster support for open AI models.
- Hugging Face will remain an open platform, supporting multicloud and multi-accelerator development.
- Over 18 million developers, researchers, and creators use Hugging Face to share millions of models, datasets, and applications.
- More than 200,000 companies use the Hugging Face platform.
Chipmaker Nvidia is acquiring artificial intelligence software platform Hugging Face for $13 billion, a move aimed at expanding its AI software reach and championing increasingly popular open-source AI models. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated that Hugging Face will remain an open platform, signaling Nvidia's bet that more businesses will opt for open-source AI, allowing them to download and customize their own models rather than paying for proprietary services.
Hugging Face hosts more than 3 million models, 500,000 data sets, and 1 million applications, used by over 18 million developers, researchers, and creators, as well as more than 200,000 companies. Nvidia has also released over 500 models and 250 open datasets on the platform. Hugging Face will continue to support multicloud and multi-accelerator development and deployment.
Nvidia's high-end chips are integral to the AI boom and are highly sought after. The company reported quarterly profits of $59.69 billion last month. The acquisition includes a $1 billion retention plan for Hugging Face employees. Nvidia's shares rose nearly 2% in morning trading following the announcement.