The U.S. Department of Justice has requested information on how the acquisition of a prominent AI model hub would influence the competitive landscape of the technology sector, sources said. The agency is reviewing the transaction between the chip designer Nvidia and the open-source platform Hugging Face to determine if the consolidation would stifle competition in the artificial intelligence industry.
The scrutiny of the $12.93 billion deal is occurring as federal regulators continue a years-long investigation into Nvidia’s general business conduct. The current inquiries focus specifically on whether the purchase of Hugging Face’s assets would give the chip maker an unfair advantage in the AI market.