Hugging Face CEO Vows to Keep Fighting for Open-Source AI After Jensen Huang's Exit

Elizabeth Lopatto argues that Jensen Huang's resignation as Nvidia CEO is unlikely to close the scandal, suggesting the second affair story served as a pretext tied to last week's report that Huang was honeypotted by an alleged Chinese spy. She links the case to chip-smuggling questions around Megaspeed, whose Singapore office The Straits Times found showed no signs of activity, and to Super Micro's alleged $2.5 billion passthrough of Nvidia chips to Alibaba, noting Nvidia reportedly intervened to halt a 2025 Commerce Department investigation of Megaspeed. Lopatto also points to incoming Democratic control of Congress and Elizabeth Warren's planned subpoenas as pressure that could keep the allegations alive.

Hugging Face CEO Clément Delangue said he will keep fighting for open-source AI "harder than ever" after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's departure, calling it a "really sad day." Nvidia announced in September a $12.9 billion plan to acquire Hugging Face, a deal the U.S. Department of Justice has been inquiring about over competition concerns and which is still scheduled to close in the first half of 2027. Huang had been a prominent advocate for open-weight models, including a July policy letter signed by 25 companies urging the U.S. government not to over-restrict them.