This analysis describes what Hugging Face's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
Making a repository public triggers an irrevocable and perpetual license to all users, meaning you cannot later withdraw those rights even if you later make the repository private.
Interpretive note: The excerpt may be part of a longer clause that specifies additional conditions or limitations not visible here, such as whether a specific open-source license governs the content.
If you set your Hugging Face repository to public, any user of the platform receives a permanent, irrevocable license to use and build upon your content.
How other platforms handle this
...you grant to users of your model a nonexclusive, worldwide, irrevocable, royalty-free license to use, store, and create derivative works from your LoRA and its output.
You hereby grant ActiveCampaign a nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, fully-paid, and sub-licensable license to use your name and any of your trade names, trademarks, logos and other proprietary marks or words pursuant to this Section.
Tinder grants you a personal, worldwide, royalty-free, non-assignable, non-exclusive, revocable, and non-sublicensable license to access and use our Services for purposes as intended by Tinder and permitted by these Terms and applicable laws.
"If you decide to set your Repository public, you grant each User a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, display, publish, reproduce, distribute, and make derivative works of your Content...Excerpt from Hugging Face's Terms of Service
Get the research letter
Companies change their terms quietly. We read every version and catch what actually changed. One email a week on the changes that matter and what they mean.
Making a repository public triggers an irrevocable and perpetual license to all users, meaning you cannot later withdraw those rights even if you later make the repository private.
If you set your Hugging Face repository to public, any user of the platform receives a permanent, irrevocable license to use and build upon your content.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 257 platforms. See the full comparison.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Hugging Face.