Rumble Eyes $1.2 Billion Acquisition of German AI Cloud Firm Northern Data

U.S.-based video platform and cloud services provider Rumble is exploring a potential $1.17 billion (€1 billion) acquisition of German artificial intelligence cloud group Northern Data. The proposed deal, confirmed by both companies, would give Rumble control over Northern Data’s GPU-rich cloud division, Taiga, and its large-scale data center business, Ardent. These assets are considered highly valuable in the growing AI computing market.

Taiga, Northern Data’s cloud arm, holds a substantial inventory of advanced Nvidia GPU chips, including approximately 20,480 H100 units and more than 2,000 H200 units. These GPUs are in high demand for AI model training and large-scale computing tasks. Rumble plans to integrate Taiga and Ardent into its operations to strengthen its technological capabilities and infrastructure.

Under the proposed terms, Rumble would offer 2.319 shares for each Northern Data share, valuing the company at roughly $18.3 per share—a 32% discount from its last closing price in Frankfurt. This structure would leave Northern Data shareholders with about 33.3% ownership of Rumble. Both parties noted that any final offer would likely be at a higher valuation than the initial proposal.

Tether, the majority shareholder of Northern Data, has expressed support for the potential deal, contingent on the divestment of Northern Data’s crypto mining unit before completion. Proceeds from this divestment would be used to reduce a loan Tether previously extended to the company. Post-acquisition, Tether would become a major Rumble customer through a multi-year GPU purchasing agreement.

While discussions are ongoing, both Rumble and Northern Data stressed there is no guarantee of a formal offer. If successful, the deal would mark a major expansion of Rumble’s AI and cloud computing capabilities, positioning it to compete in the high-performance infrastructure market amid surging demand for GPU resources.

Source: Reuters