Tether and Rumble Team Up to Acquire Northern Data in $767M AI–Crypto Power Play

Video-sharing platform Rumble has announced plans to acquire AI infrastructure and crypto mining firm Northern Data, funded by its partnership with stablecoin issuer Tether.

The acquisition highlights how Tether’s financial backing has helped Rumble’s to step out of the social media world to cross over into the fast-growing world of AI and blockchain.

In a statement released Monday, Rumble confirmed that it had entered into a business combination agreement to purchase Northern Data for approximately $767 million, following a pact made with Tether back in August.

Tether’s involvement has been instrumental in fueling Rumble’s latest strategic move. In December 2024, the stablecoin issuer invested $775 million into Rumble, describing the partnership as a shared commitment to “freedom of speech and financial freedom.”

According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, the relationship extends far beyond capital injection. During Rumble’s third-quarter 2025 investor call, Ardoino confirmed that Tether had agreed to a $150 million GPU service purchasing deal connected to the Northern Data acquisition, along with a $100 million advertising agreement.

These moves demonstrate Tether’s growing influence not just as a financial player but as a technological enabler in the AI and media sectors.

“Our investment in Rumble is about building infrastructure that protects fundamental freedoms. We share the same vision of developing open, censorship-resistant platforms that can counterbalance centralized Big Tech.”

The acquisition deepens Rumble’s ambitions to position itself as a serious challenger to YouTube’s dominance. After the Tether Investment, Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski revealed Rumble's intentions to “attack YouTube’s market share,” leveraging its decentralized ethos and partnerships to appeal to creators seeking greater autonomy.

Since the announcement, Rumble’s Nasdaq-listed shares (RUM) have gained 7.6% over the past five days, reaching $6.42 at the time of publication — a reflection of investor optimism around the company’s expanding business model and AI-driven roadmap.

The Rumble–Tether–Northern Data deal underscores a broader trend within the blockchain sector: crypto firms are increasingly venturing into artificial intelligence to expand their technological footprint.

Earlier this year, Chainalysis acquired AI fraud detection startup Alterya for roughly $150 million, enhancing its fraud prevention capabilities for blockchain payments. Meanwhile, Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings announced a $168 million acquisition of a 64% stake in French AI and cloud infrastructure firm Exaion in August.

These moves reflect a growing recognition that AI and blockchain are converging industries — both reliant on large-scale computing, data transparency, and trustless systems. For Rumble and Tether, the acquisition of Northern Data represents not just a business deal, but an alignment of philosophy: building open, independent systems that challenge traditional digital monopolies.

As the partnership evolves, observers suggest that Tether’s deep capital reserves and Rumble’s creator-driven platform could form a powerful combination — one that merges financial infrastructure with digital freedom narratives.

Whether this will be enough to make Rumble a viable competitor to YouTube remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the intersection of crypto and AI is becoming the next major battleground for innovation and influence.