Video-sharing platform Rumble has announced a business combination agreement with AI infrastructure company Northern Data. This development follows Rumble's deepening financial relationship with stablecoin issuer Tether.
In a notice released on Monday, Rumble stated its intention to acquire Northern Data. This acquisition comes after Rumble's August announcement with Tether, which involved a joint venture aimed at purchasing the AI infrastructure company. Reports suggest that the acquisition is valued at approximately $767 million, structured as a stock deal between Rumble and Northern Data.
Tether made a significant investment of $775 million into Rumble in December 2024. Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, cited the platform’s commitment to "fundamental values of freedom of speech and financial freedom" as the reason for this investment.
Ardoino participated in Rumble’s third-quarter 2025 investor call, where he confirmed Tether's agreement to a $150 million GPU service purchasing deal as part of the Northern Data acquisition. Additionally, Tether committed to a $100 million advertising deal.
During the Monday investor call, Ardonio elaborated on Tether's strategic vision: "Our investment in Rumble is about building infrastructure that protects [...] freedoms. We share the same vision of creating open platforms as a counterweight to centralized, censor-prone Big Tech."
Following Tether's 2024 investment, Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski indicated the platform's ambition to challenge YouTube's market dominance. The company's RUM stock on Nasdaq saw an increase of approximately 7.6% in the five days leading up to this announcement, reaching $6.42 at the time of publication.
Crypto Companies Expanding into AI Services
Tether's joint interest in Northern Data with Rumble represents the latest move by a cryptocurrency or blockchain company to expand its presence in AI services through acquisitions.
Earlier in the year, in January, Chainalysis acquired the AI fraud detection startup Alterya for a reported $150 million. This acquisition was part of the blockchain analytics company's strategy to enhance "proactive fraud protection for payments and enhanced fraud detection." Following this trend, Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings announced in August a $168 million deal to acquire a 64% stake in Exaion, a French company specializing in AI and cloud infrastructure.