Hugging Face is an open source data science and machine learning platform that acts as a hub for AI experts and enthusiasts. It was originally launched as a chatbot app in 2017 but has evolved to provide infrastructure for hosting AI models, training them, and collaborating with teams. The platform offers features such as creating and browsing AI models, accessing over 200,000 models from various domains including natural language processing, computer vision, and audio. It also hosts over 30,000 datasets that can be used to train models, making the training process easier. Hugging Face allows users to host their models, browse datasets, and create showcases or self-contained demos called Spaces that can be shared with a wider audience. The platform also provides integrations with other apps through Zapier, allowing users to automate workflows without requiring technical expertise. Overall, Hugging Face is an important platform for open source collaboration in AI development.