Top Stories This Morning: Nvidia to Acquire Hugging Face; Salesforce and CrowdStrike Shares Surge

Nvidia has agreed to acquire Hugging Face, the largest repository of open-source AI models, for $12.9 billion, according to The Information. Salesforce forecast accelerated growth and expanded its integration with Anthropic, sending its stock up more than 14%. CrowdStrike also rose 9% after forecasting annual revenue of $5.99 billion to $6.01 billion amid growing demand for cybersecurity against AI threats. Read about these and other topics in our roundup of key events as of the morning of August 27.

Nvidia reported better-than-expected results: revenue in the second fiscal quarter more than doubled to $96.22 billion, compared with the expected $92.17 billion, according to CNBC. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $2.22, compared with a forecast of $2.1, while net income was $53.95 billion, up from $24.76 billion a year earlier.

For fiscal year 2028, Nvidia expects revenue growth of 70%, while analysts had forecast growth of 44%. The company notes continued strong demand for AI chips but warns of supply constraints and rising memory costs. Nvidia’s stock rose 5% following the release of the forecast.

Nvidia has agreed to acquire the Hugging Face platform for $12.9 billion, according to The Information, citing a source familiar with the matter. Hugging Face, the largest repository of open-source AI models, recently reached $150 million in annual revenue —meaning Nvidia has valued the company at approximately 80 times its annual revenue.

The deal will strengthen Nvidia's position in the open AI models segment and could help the company sustain demand for its chips as OpenAI and other AI companies develop their own processors. Hugging Face could also expand Nvidia’s cloud business: its infrastructure enables the deployment of models and the provision of computing power to customers.

Salesforce expects revenue of about $11.5 billion in the third fiscal quarter, slightly above analysts' forecasts, according to Bloomberg. In the second quarter, revenue rose 11% to $11.3 billion, and contract revenue is expected to increase by about 14%. The company also said its net bookings reached a four-year high.

Salesforce has expanded its partnership with Anthropic, which will allow the company to integrate its products into the Claude chatbot. And Salesforce’s AI service, Agentforce, is expected to generate about $1.5 billion in revenue this year. The results eased concerns that the development of AI poses a threat to Salesforce’s business: the company’s stock jumped more than 14% in after-hours trading.

CrowdStrike expects revenue of up to $1.53 billion in the third quarter and $5.99 billion to $6.01 billion for the full year—above analysts’ forecasts, according to Bloomberg. In the second quarter, revenue rose to $1.47 billion, compared with analysts’ expectations of $1.44 billion, while annual recurring revenue reached $5.84 billion.

Demand for CrowdStrike’s products is growing amid concerns about cyberattacks involving AI. The company views the protection of AI systems as the biggest market opportunity in its history. CrowdStrike’s stock rose 9% in after-hours trading and has gained more than 60% year-to-date.

SoftBank is in talks to acquire a controlling stake in 1X Technologies, a developer of humanoid robots backed by OpenAI, with the startup valued at approximately $6 billion, according to The Information. Previously, 1X had attempted to raise $1 billion at a $10 billion valuation but raised less than half of that amount.

The deal will strengthen SoftBank’s robotics division, which Masayoshi Son calls one of the key elements of “physical AI.” 1X is already accepting pre-orders for the $20,000 Neo home robot and reported more than 10,000 orders in the first week, though deliveries to customers have not yet begun.

— Japan's broad-based Topix index rose 0.1%, while the Nikkei 225 fell 0.1%.

— Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.4%, while mainland China's CSI 300 Index rose 0.4%.

— In South Korea, the Kospi rose 1.4%, and the Kosdaq rose 1%.

— Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was down 1%.

— Nasdaq Composite futures rose 0.7%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.2%.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor