Artificial Intelligence1 min read

Hugging Face CEO vows to keep fighting for open-source AI after Jensen Huang’s exit

By · Via TechCrunch · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Nvidia previously pursued major open-source initiatives under former leadership, such as releasing Nemotron models and forming a $6 billion alliance with startup Poolside. However, the unexpected executive transition to interim CEO Collette Kress has cast uncertainty over the company's broader open-source trajectory. Despite the shift at the top, the buyout of Hugging Face remains scheduled to conclude in the first half of 2027, provided it clears an ongoing Department of Justice antitrust inquiry.

Key points

  • Hugging Face's leadership reaffirmed its dedication to open-source development despite th…: Hugging Face's leadership reaffirmed its dedication to open-source development despite the departure of a major corporate ally.
  • The pending corporate takeover remains on track for the first half of 2027 amid federal r…: The pending corporate takeover remains on track for the first half of 2027 amid federal regulatory scrutiny.
  • Leadership changes at Nvidia create industry uncertainty regarding the tech giant's futur…: Leadership changes at Nvidia create industry uncertainty regarding the tech giant's future commitment to supporting open AI ecosystems.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Hugging Face CEO Clément Delangue briefly commented on Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s departure on Thursday, calling it a “really sad day.” Nvidia had announced its plan to acquire the platform for open-source AI models in September for $12.9 billion, making it the second-largest acquisition in the company’s history, just behind that of chipmaker Groq’s assets for $20 billion in December 2025.

“This whole thing sucks, and I wish none of it had happened. It’s a really sad day! But I want to make one thing clear: we’ll keep fighting for open-source AI, harder than ever. This is too important to slow down now. Let’s go!,” Delangue wrote on X.

The post is interesting as it implies that Huang’s departure is potentially worrying to open-source advocates, and he’s attempting to offer reassurance.

As Nvidia’s CEO, Huang was known as a strong advocate for open-source AI and open-weight models, which is why there could be concerns about how a company that’s no longer under his leadership will now approach this space.

After Nvidia announced its plans to acquire Hugging Face, the U.S.…

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