# Nvidia's $12.9 Billion Hugging Face Deal Draws DOJ Antitrust Probe

- URL: https://usa-24.com/nvidia-hugging-face-doj-antitrust-probe/
- Publisher: USA 24
- Section: Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Published: 2026-10-30T20:24:57.891Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T20:24:57.899Z
- Topics: Nvidia, Hugging Face, Antitrust, Open-Source AI, DOJ Investigation

> The Justice Department is asking whether Nvidia’s planned $12.9 billion purchase of Hugging Face would hurt competitors. The inquiry is early and shows no wrongdoing.

## Key takeaways

- The Justice Department is examining whether Nvidia’s planned $12.9 billion purchase of Hugging Face would hurt competitors, a probe Reuters first reported on October 28.
- Hugging Face has more than 18 million users and 200,000-plus companies, who share at least 3 million models and 500,000 datasets, according to Nvidia’s announcement figures.
- No lawsuit or formal proceeding has been filed against the deal, and the DOJ could close its review without legal action.
- Nvidia shares slipped 1.7% in Wednesday trading after the report, and the deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027.
- Developers should keep local copies of key models and watch for changes to model access, pricing and hardware compatibility as the deal moves forward.

The U.S. Justice Department is examining whether Nvidia’s planned $12.9 billion purchase of Hugging Face would hurt competitors, according to a [Reuters report](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4659452-dept-of-justice-studying-nvidias-129b-acquisition-of-hugging-face---reuters) published Wednesday, October 28. The review is in its early stages. One summary of the probe notes there is no lawsuit and no formal proceeding against the deal.

The core question is straightforward. Could Nvidia, which already dominates the market for AI chips, gain control of one of the main places where developers find and download open AI models? Hugging Face is an open-source platform for hosting and testing AI models, and it has become a central distribution point for them.

## What the Nvidia Hugging Face DOJ investigation covers

Officials want to know how the $12.93 billion acquisition would affect competition in AI. Specifically, they are asking whether the deal would let Nvidia capture a fundamental distribution point for AI, and whether Nvidia could use Hugging Face to hurt rivals, according to [Channel Insider](https://www.channelinsider.com/ai/news-nvidia-hugging-face-acquisition-doj-antitrust-scrutiny/), which cited Reuters.

That framing makes the probe less about chips and more about who controls the software and model supply that chips run. Owning the platform would give Nvidia a say over a key channel for AI models and software, and antitrust enforcers are focused on exactly that possibility.

The review also sits inside a broader, multi-year DOJ investigation into Nvidia’s conduct that began under President Joe Biden, as [The Next Web](https://thenextweb.com/news/doj-nvidia-hugging-face-deal-antitrust-inquiry) reported. The Hugging Face question is therefore not a fresh start for regulators. It is a new chapter in a file that predates the deal.

The Justice Department has declined to comment on the specifics, citing long-standing policy. Nvidia declined to comment, and Hugging Face did not respond to requests for comment. Because Reuters’ reporting relies on two people familiar with the matter, the full scope of the review is not public.

The inquiry does not establish wrongdoing. The DOJ could close its review without legal action, and it has not said whether it will issue a formal second request or sue.

## Why Hugging Face is the prize

The platform’s reach explains the attention. Figures from Nvidia’s announcement, as [CNBC reported](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/28/doj-questions-nvidias-12point9-billion-hugging-face-deal.html), put the community at more than 18 million people and more than 200,000 companies. Those users share at least 3 million models and 500,000 datasets.

When the deal was announced, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said it would help “expand access to AI for developers and institutions worldwide.” That pitch is the center of Nvidia’s defense: a larger owner with more resources, running an open platform. Regulators will test whether the openness survives the ownership change.

Nvidia has said Hugging Face will keep supporting rival processors, cloud architectures and software ecosystems. That commitment comes from Nvidia, though, and it has not been independently verified. If Nvidia owns the platform, rival chipmakers and cloud providers would depend on a distribution point controlled by their largest competitor, which is the scenario the probe asks about.

Reports also disagree on the timeline. CNBC and The Next Web say the deal was announced in September, while Benzinga says August. Treat the announcement date as unsettled until the companies provide more detail.

On money, one summary of the terms puts the payment at about $13 billion. Of that, $11.9 billion goes to current shareholders, and up to $1 billion more would go to retention bonuses, according to [Pasquale Pillitteri’s report](https://pasqualepillitteri.it/en/news/28540/doj-questions-nvidia-hugging-face-acquisition).

## How the Hugging Face deal compares with Nvidia’s earlier moves

At $12.9 billion, the Hugging Face purchase would be Nvidia’s second-largest deal, behind a roughly $20 billion arrangement with Groq at the end of last year. That Groq deal was structured as a license plus the hiring of top executives rather than an outright acquisition. CNBC reported that the Groq arrangement also drew DOJ scrutiny.

The closest precedent is older. In 2018, Microsoft bought GitHub for $7.5 billion, placing a widely used developer platform under a large technology company. Hugging Face is a different kind of asset, because its value lies in models and datasets rather than source code repositories.

[Benzinga](https://www.benzinga.com/markets/tech/26/10/62684670/nvidia-faces-doj-scrutiny-over-12-9-billion-hugging-face-deal-amid-concerns-about-unfair-ai-advantage-report) reports that the DOJ has also reviewed Nvidia’s December 2025 acquisition of SchedMD, which makes open-source software used in supercomputers relevant to national security. That account comes from a single outlet, so treat it as unconfirmed until other reporting matches it.

The wider regulatory climate is also tightening. The FTC has pressed AI companies on other fronts, including a demand that Anthropic executives testify in a consumer-harm probe, as [USA 24 has reported](https://usa-24.com/ftc-anthropic-investigation-executives-testify/). Open-weight models are part of the same debate. Mistral has released [Large 4 with open weights](https://usa-24.com/mistral-large-4-open-weights/), pitching it at cybersecurity defenders.

## What developers and businesses should do now

No action is required today. The deal has not closed, and the probe does not change how Hugging Face works this week. Channel Insider advises developers and businesses that build AI apps on the platform to watch for changes to model access, hardware compatibility, cloud integrations and pricing as the deal moves forward.

A few steps make sense now:

- Keep local copies of the models and datasets your products depend on, and record the version and license for each one.
- Read the license terms on any model before you build it into a product.
- Test critical pipelines on a second hardware or cloud setup so compatibility problems show up early.
- Track Nvidia’s deal disclosures and any DOJ filing, including a formal second request.

Investors face a narrower question. Nvidia shares slipped 1.7% in Wednesday trading after the report. The probe is a regulatory risk, not a finding of wrongdoing, and a short-term stock move on an early inquiry is a reaction, not a verdict.

## When the Hugging Face deal could close

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027, according to [Yahoo Finance’s summary of the Reuters report](https://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/nvidia-faces-doj-antitrust-scrutiny-202028682.html). That timeline leaves room for a full federal review before closing.

Several questions remain open. The DOJ has not said whether it will issue a formal second request or file suit. Nvidia and Hugging Face have not publicly answered the substance of the probe, and whether Hugging Face stays fully open after closing rests on Nvidia’s word.

What to watch next is clear. A formal second request or a lawsuit would signal that the probe has moved past early fact-gathering. A quiet close of the review would suggest regulators found no case worth bringing. Either outcome will show how Washington views control of the software that AI runs on, and whether an open platform can stay open under a chipmaker’s ownership.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the Nvidia Hugging Face deal under a DOJ lawsuit?

No. The Justice Department is examining whether the deal would hurt competitors, and one summary of the probe notes there is no lawsuit and no formal proceeding against it. The DOJ could close its review without legal action, and it has not said whether it will issue a formal second request.

### How much is Nvidia paying for Hugging Face?

The deal is valued at $12.9 billion, also written as $12.93 billion. The payment is about $13 billion, with $11.9 billion going to current shareholders and up to $1 billion in retention bonuses. The figures come from a secondary summary of the deal terms.

### When is the Nvidia Hugging Face deal expected to close?

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027. Reports disagree on whether Nvidia announced it in August or September, so the timeline should be treated with care until the companies share more detail.

### Is Hugging Face safe to use after the Nvidia deal?

Nothing changes today because the deal has not closed. Nvidia has said Hugging Face will keep supporting rival processors, cloud architectures and software ecosystems, though that claim has not been independently verified. Keeping local copies of key models is a sensible precaution.

## Sources

1. [Nvidia's $12.9 billion Hugging Face deal draws DOJ scrutiny — CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/28/doj-questions-nvidias-12point9-billion-hugging-face-deal.html)
2. [Nvidia's $12.9B Hugging Face Deal Faces DOJ Antitrust Scrutiny — Channel Insider](https://www.channelinsider.com/ai/news-nvidia-hugging-face-acquisition-doj-antitrust-scrutiny/)
3. [Nvidia faces DOJ antitrust scrutiny over $12.9B Hugging Face deal, Reuters says — Yahoo Finance (Investing.com)](https://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/nvidia-faces-doj-antitrust-scrutiny-202028682.html)
4. [DOJ looks into Nvidia's $12.9B Hugging Face deal, Reuters reports — The Next Web](https://thenextweb.com/news/doj-nvidia-hugging-face-deal-antitrust-inquiry)
5. [Nvidia Faces DOJ Scrutiny Over $12.9 Billion Hugging Face Deal Amid Concerns About Unfair AI Advantage — Benzinga](https://www.benzinga.com/markets/tech/26/10/62684670/nvidia-faces-doj-scrutiny-over-12-9-billion-hugging-face-deal-amid-concerns-about-unfair-ai-advantage-report)
6. [Dept of Justice studying Nvidia's $12.9B acquisition of Hugging Face — Reuters via Seeking Alpha](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4659452-dept-of-justice-studying-nvidias-129b-acquisition-of-hugging-face---reuters)
7. [DOJ questions Nvidia's $12.9 billion Hugging Face acquisition — Pasquale Pillitteri](https://pasqualepillitteri.it/en/news/28540/doj-questions-nvidia-hugging-face-acquisition)