Nvidia is buying Hugging Face for about $13 billion, extending the chipmaker’s AI strategy into the developer layer and a platform used to find, adapt and deploy models. Hugging Face says 18 million AI builders use its service and is targeting 100 million in the next few years. The deal reflects Nvidia’s view that cheaper, more accessible AI can increase total computing demand, an idea associated with the Jevons paradox. Hugging Face also supports models, clouds and hardware from across the industry, raising questions about preferential treatment for Nvidia technology and access to users’ private models. AI agents are becoming users of the platform as well. The transaction follows major model updates from Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta and Google, Nvidia’s deeper MediaTek partnership on custom AI chips, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s reported opposition to a proposed national AI regulator.