Nvidia is expanding its dominance from AI hardware to the software ecosystem by acquiring Hugging Face, an open-source AI model sharing platform, for approximately $12.9 billion (around 13 trillion KRW).
Do you think of ‘AI’ only as a giant supercomputer or a lab calculating complex mathematical formulas? In fact, there is a hidden secret behind why AI technology has developed so spectacularly lately. It is thanks to the ‘open source’ culture (a method where anyone can freely use and modify technology), where developers around the world freely share the AI models they have created and improve them in better directions.
However, news recently broke that Nvidia, the absolute powerhouse in AI hardware, has acquired ‘Hugging Face,’ the center of this open-source AI ecosystem, for a astronomical sum of approximately $12.93 billion (around 13 trillion KRW). Source: NVIDIA confirms it will buy Hugging Face for $12.9 billion Why on earth did Nvidia spend such a large fortune to buy this startup? Let’s easily break down what changes this decision might bring to our daily lives.
Why is this news important?
In our daily lives, we are already using countless AI functions knowingly or unknowingly. Everything from retouching photos on our smartphones to asking questions of a voice assistant is thanks to AI technology. The reason these technologies can become smarter and faster every day is that developers around the world are creating new AI models, improving them, and accumulating knowledge every day. Source: Nvidia agrees to buy Hugging Face for almost $13 billion, AI expansion
Until now, Nvidia was well-known as a hardware company that supplied the top-performance ‘brains,’ or GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), needed to run these AI models vigorously. However, Nvidia determined that it would be difficult to dominate the entire massive AI industry just by making good chips. Through this acquisition, Nvidia has completely seized the ‘software platform environment’ where developers design and utilize AI. Source: NVIDIA To Acquire Hugging Face For $13 Billion - Ciente Simply put, Nvidia now manages not only the ‘engine (chip)’ of the car called AI but also the ‘roads and traffic lights (platform)’ on which the car runs.
Easy to understand: The ‘GitHub’ of the AI world
Hugging Face is often called the ‘GitHub of AI developers’ (GitHub, the world’s largest platform where developers share code). Established in 2016, this platform currently hosts over 3 million AI models and 1 million applications. Source: NVIDIA confirms it will buy Hugging Face for $12.9 billion
To put it in perspective:
- Past AI development: It was like a chef struggling alone from start to finish, from trimming ingredients to blending sauces, to perfect their own secret recipe.
- Now, with Hugging Face: It is like chefs from all over the world sharing their recipes and bringing in a delicious ‘base sauce (verified AI model)’ that someone else made to whip up their own special dish (their own app). Source: Google News - Nvidia reportedly agrees to buy Hugging Face for…
| Hugging Face acts as a massive hub that helps developers easily find and deploy already well-made models rather than creating complex AI models from scratch. [Source: Nvidia agrees to acquire Hugging Face for $12.9 billion | Tagblick](https://rusnews.kr.ua/en/artikel/nvidia-agrees-to-acquire-hugging-face-for-12-9-billion-f4ee3569) |
What is the current situation?
| The acquisition price of $12.9 billion is a figure with a huge ‘premium’ attached when looking solely at Hugging Face’s revenue scale. Hugging Face has raised about $400 million so far and has recently been recording about $150 million in annual revenue. [Source: Nvidia to buy AI platform Hugging Face for $12.9B | LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/nvidia-to-buy-ai-platform-hugging-face-for-129b-8561001/) The fact that the acquisition price is over 80 times the revenue shows how highly Nvidia evaluated the ‘power of data’ and ‘future value’ possessed by this platform, beyond simple profits. |
The terms of the deal are also very unconventional. Approximately $11.9 billion will be paid to Hugging Face investors in cash and other forms, and the remaining $1 billion will be used for a stock compensation program for Hugging Face employees joining Nvidia. Source: Nvidia to buy Hugging Face in $12.9bn deal - The Guardian
Future prospects: Imagine it
| Experts agree that this acquisition will change the landscape of the entire AI industry. Nvidia plans to further strengthen Hugging Face’s infrastructure so that general developers and institutions can use and research AI technology much more easily than before. [Source: NVIDIA To Acquire Hugging Face | NVIDIA Blog](https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/nvidia-to-acquire-hugging-face/) |
However, there are certainly some worried perspectives. Because the core spirit of open source is ‘equal and free access for everyone,’ there are concerns that this spirit might be damaged if it falls under the control of a corporate giant like Nvidia. Source: Hugging Face Acquisition by Nvidia: $12.9B Open-Source Deal How Nvidia will protect the unique freedom and openness of Hugging Face and how it will harmonize with their own ecosystem will be an important point to watch in the future AI market.
MindTickleBytes AI Reporter’s Perspective
Nvidia’s move is like a ‘highway designer’ buying all the ‘cars’ that drive on it. Can Nvidia, with hardware and software as one body, really accelerate the democratization of AI technology? Or will the influence of a giant corporation become too large, harming diversity? We are currently passing through an important turning point in AI history.
References
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[NVIDIA To Acquire Hugging Face NVIDIA Blog](https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/nvidia-to-acquire-hugging-face/) -
[Nvidia to buy AI platform Hugging Face for $12.9B LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/nvidia-to-buy-ai-platform-hugging-face-for-129b-8561001/) - Google News - Nvidia reportedly agrees to buy Hugging Face for…
- Hugging Face Acquired for $86.7 Billion: Landmark AI Industry Deal…
- NVIDIA To Acquire Hugging Face For $13 Billion - Ciente
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[Nvidia agrees to acquire Hugging Face for $12.9 billion Tagblick](https://rusnews.kr.ua/en/artikel/nvidia-agrees-to-acquire-hugging-face-for-12-9-billion-f4ee3569) - Nvidia agrees to buy Hugging Face for almost $13 billion, AI …
- Nvidia confirms it will buy Hugging Face for $12.9 billion
- Nvidia to buy Hugging Face in $12.9bn deal - The Guardian
- Nvidia reportedly agrees to buy Hugging Face for $12.9 billion
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[Nvidia closes in on Hugging Face acquisition TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/26/nvidia-closes-in-on-hugging-face-acquisition/) - Hugging Face Acquisition by Nvidia: $12.9B Open-Source Deal
- Nvidia agrees to buy Hugging Face for $12.9B, report says
- Securing hardware manufacturing plants
- Securing software ecosystem and AI model infrastructure
- Simple real estate investment for profit
- A shopping mall that sells AI models directly
- An open-source platform where developers worldwide share AI models and data
- A repair center for personal computers
- Approximately $12.9 billion
- Approximately $4 million
- Approximately $15 billion