Nvidia’s planned acquisition of Hugging Face is drawing scrutiny from US antitrust officials. The Justice Department is examining whether the purchase could give Nvidia control over a key hub for distributing AI and harm competitors.
Why the Hugging Face purchase matters to regulators
The deal is worth $12.93 billion, and Nvidia expects it to close in the first half of 2027. The Justice Department’s questions, reported by Reuters citing two sources, focus on what ownership of the open-source platform could mean for access to AI distribution.
The concern is about the position Hugging Face occupies in the AI ecosystem. If a company that also sells AI chips gains control of a key distribution hub, officials want to understand whether that could affect competitors. The source describes this as an issue under examination, not a finding that the acquisition would harm competition.
Nvidia says Hugging Face will continue supporting partnerships with a range of chip, cloud, and AI providers. That commitment is relevant to the concern: regulators are considering the possibility of control, while the company says the platform’s relationships will remain broad.
A wider inquiry into Nvidia’s business practices
The review of the Hugging Face acquisition sits within a broader US investigation of Nvidia’s acquisitions, investments, sales practices, and possible pressure on customers. The probe began under Joe Biden and has continued under Donald Trump.
Officials have also looked at Nvidia’s acquisitions of SchedMD and Run:ai, as well as its licensing deal with Groq. The review includes questions about whether Nvidia offered customers more AI chips when they also bought Nvidia networking gear and Groq processors.
Those questions extend beyond corporate ownership. They concern how products and commercial arrangements may be connected, and whether customers face pressure to choose several offerings together. The source reports that regulators are checking these practices; it does not state that officials have reached a conclusion.
Competition concerns extend to Europe
Nvidia faces scrutiny in Europe as well. France’s competition authority is investigating alleged anticompetitive business practices, with concerns that include the industry’s dependence on Nvidia’s CUDA programming software and Nvidia’s stakes in cloud providers such as CoreWeave.
The French regulator has pointed to possible risks involving supply restrictions, unfair contract terms, and discrimination against certain customers. These are concerns raised as part of an investigation, rather than confirmed outcomes.
Taken together, the US and French reviews show the range of questions regulators are asking about Nvidia: whether an acquisition could affect access to an AI distribution platform, how sales practices may shape customer choices, and whether software or business ties could create risks for competitors or customers.
What remains unresolved
The Justice Department is still examining the proposed Hugging Face deal, and Nvidia’s expected closing timeframe is the first half of 2027. The information available here does not say what conditions, if any, regulators might impose or whether the deal will be completed on that schedule.
For now, the key distinction is between scrutiny and a decision. Officials are investigating potential effects on competition, while Nvidia says Hugging Face will maintain partnerships across chips, cloud services, and AI. The outcome will determine whether the proposed acquisition can proceed as planned.