Hugging Face: Delangue Defends Open Source Amid Acquisition Investigation

Key Takeaways

1The Department of Justice is investigating Nvidia's acquisition of Hugging Face

2The deal, announced at $12.9 billion, is not expected to be finalized before 2027

3Jensen Huang, former CEO of Nvidia, was a proponent of open source; Clément Delangue promises to continue this commitment

4Nvidia is ramping up initiatives around open-weight models

Why it matters : The future of open source AI and the governance of Hugging Face depend on the outcome of this acquisition and the directions taken by Nvidia.

The acquisition of Hugging Face by Nvidia is under investigation by the Department of Justice and is not expected to be finalized until the first half of 2027. In this uncertain context and following Jensen Huang's departure, Clément Delangue promises to defend open source. Huang had made numerous statements and initiated projects in favor of open-weight models, while Nvidia launched new models and partnerships.

Timeline, Potential Control, and Interim Governance at Nvidia

The U.S. Department of Justice has been examining the competitive impact of Nvidia's proposed acquisition of Hugging Face since October. This operation would allow Nvidia to control a major distribution channel for AI models, while promising that the platform would maintain open support. The finalization of the deal is anticipated for the first half of 2027. Requests for clarification on the status of the case and any potential exchanges between Hugging Face and Collette Kress, interim CEO of Nvidia, have gone unanswered. Meanwhile, Nvidia has expanded the Nemotron family with a 120 billion parameter model aimed at enterprise agents.

Jensen Huang's Public Stances on Open Source

In July, Jensen Huang published a policy letter on AI on X, signed by 25 companies including Microsoft, Meta, Hugging Face, IBM, and Palantir. This letter urged the U.S. government not to impose excessive restrictions on open-weight models, which are deemed essential as they can be downloaded, inspected, modified, and run on private infrastructure, making AI more accessible, adaptable, and widely available. Huang also stated that these models broaden access to the AI economy, enhance competition, and provide customers with more control by avoiding lock-in with a single provider. In January, at CES in Las Vegas, he remarked that open-source models have truly revolutionized artificial intelligence.

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Agreements and Models: The Initiatives Launched by Nvidia

In August, Nvidia announced a $6 billion agreement with coding startup Poolside. According to the Wall Street Journal, this deal aims to build an open AI ecosystem in the United States, with the goal of helping the country compete with Chinese companies such as DeepSeek and Kimi K3. More recently, Nvidia unveiled two lightweight Bolt models capable of running on PCs.

Hugging Face's Response and the Acquisition Framework

Clément Delangue posted a message on X expressing his disappointment following Jensen Huang's departure and asserting that he would continue to fight for open-source AI, deeming the cause too important to slow down. Nvidia announced in September its intention to acquire Hugging Face for $12.9 billion, making it the second-largest acquisition in its history, following the purchase of Groq's assets for $20 billion in December 2025. Jensen Huang, recognized as a supporter of open-weight models, has left his position, raising concerns about the company's future direction in this area. Delangue's message aims to reassure open-source advocates.