After USDT, Tether is searching for its next "gold mine," having already invested approximately $2 billion in AI and alternative financial infrastructure.
TechFlow Selected TechFlow Selected
After USDT, Tether is searching for its next "gold mine," having already invested approximately $2 billion in AI and alternative financial infrastructure.
For Tether, investing in AI not only means technological innovation but also ensures the company remains at the forefront of technology.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsBy Chloe, PANews
On October 26, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino unveiled the company's latest Local AI development kit at the Lugano Plan ₿ event in Switzerland. This new artificial intelligence SDK emphasizes user privacy and is powered by peer-to-peer (P2P) technology.
A standout feature of Local AI is its versatility—developers can run their code across a wide range of devices, from low-cost phones to high-end smartphones, laptops, and large systems equipped with H100 processors. Additionally, the technology can be applied to various devices such as smart refrigerators and car entertainment systems.
In March this year, Tether announced the creation of a new AI division, "Tether Data," accelerating its expansion into the AI sector with the goal of building next-generation open AI models. Under Paolo Ardoino’s leadership, the newly formed Tether Data focuses on developing “open-source, multimodal AI models.” This strategic move underscores Tether’s commitment to enhancing AI accessibility and efficiency while advancing AI and P2P technologies.
Launching Local AI to Expand Beyond Traditional Computing Devices
At the recent Lugano Plan ₿ event in Switzerland, Ardoino demonstrated how Local AI transcends the limitations of traditional computing devices. The software development kit (SDK) could eventually be integrated into smart appliances like refrigerators and car entertainment systems, highlighting its broad potential applications.
Local AI emphasizes “local” computation, meaning all AI processing occurs directly on users’ own devices, using P2P (peer-to-peer) technology to enable direct data exchange between devices.
Traditional network architecture relies on servers that store every image, website, or application, each having its own IP address. When browsing a webpage, users send requests to these servers via their IP addresses—effectively placing control over user data in the hands of centralized servers.
In contrast, P2P networks require every user on the network to store part or all of the data. Users not only initiate requests to other IP addresses but also handle incoming requests—essentially turning each device into its own server. This aligns precisely with Tether’s vision of advancing AI and P2P technology.
A key capability of Local AI is its ability to load and store model weights and fine-tuning data within a P2P framework. This approach keeps sensitive personal information secure and reduces reliance on central servers. At the Plan ₿ event, Ardoino showcased a fully local, privacy-focused translation app capable of running on any device, preventing personal data from being shared with third parties. It supports multiple models, including Marian and Llama. The foundation of Local AI stems from the open-source project “holepunchto/bare,” which plays a crucial role in its architecture.
For example, if a user runs a translation app built on the Local AI SDK, it could directly fetch updated language models from other users. Their personal device could then share optimized translation results directly with others—all encrypted and without going through a central server.
Finally, Tether plans to release the Local AI SDK as open-source software after completing comprehensive testing. This will benefit developers and communities interested in AI and privacy-preserving technologies, marking another step in Tether’s expansion beyond stablecoin services into broader AI offerings.
Building Compute Capital Through Chip Purchases Last Year, Expanding AI Operations This Year
In 2023, Tether reported a net profit of $6.2 billion. In September of last year, the company made a major investment in AI hardware, spending $420 million to purchase 10,000 Nvidia H100 GPU chips—each valued at approximately $40,000—accounting for about 2% of Nvidia’s total annual shipment of 550,000 H100 units.
This transaction was part of a collaboration between Tether and Bitcoin mining firm Northern Data Group: Northern Data gained access to a large number of H100s, while Tether acquired a 20% stake in Northern Data. According to Forbes, Northern plans to rent out these GPUs to AI startups urgently needing massive computational power, potentially making it one of Europe’s largest GPU operators outside Amazon, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle.
In March this year, Tether launched Tether Data, focusing its AI expansion on several key areas. First, developing open-source, multimodal AI models to set new industry standards and drive innovation and accessibility in AI. In an interview with WIRED, Ardoino stated, “Decentralization can apply to different fields, such as AI. We’ve seen AI become highly politicized. We believe it’s important to have a role independent of traditional tech giants like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google.”
Second, Tether Data aims to seamlessly integrate AI solutions into market-ready products, leveraging technology to solve real-world challenges. Lastly, through community contributions, Tether Data actively participates in the broader ecosystem, pushing forward the field of open AI while showcasing its innovative projects.
Well-Capitalized, Tether Sets Sights on Amazon, Microsoft, and Google
In June this year, Tether released a report showing $5.2 billion in profits for the first half of 2024, with total reserves reaching $118.5 billion. After serving six years as CTO, Ardoino assumed the role of CEO in December last year. Under his leadership, Tether has made significant investments in energy development, Bitcoin mining, and communications technology to diversify its portfolio.
Ardoino noted that part of the funds are used to build a buffer for USDT reserves, while the remainder flows into Tether’s new venture capital arm, Tether Evo. The company has already secured a majority stake in Blackrock Neurotech, a neurotechnology startup. “Brain-computer interface (BCI) technology will become increasingly important in the future. Building brain-computer interfaces that respect individual privacy—ensuring data remains local and isn’t collected by a single platform operator—is critically important,” Ardoino said in an interview.
Additionally, Ardoino emphasized that AI is another key area for Tether’s business growth. Tether’s VC team evaluates up to hundreds of proposals per month, most coming directly from startups. To date, it has invested around $2 billion in AI and alternative financial infrastructure. For Tether, investing in AI represents not just technological innovation but also a strategy to remain at the forefront of emerging technologies.
Join TechFlow official community to stay tuned
Telegram:https://t.me/TechFlowDaily
X (Twitter):https://x.com/TechFlowPost
X (Twitter) EN:https://x.com/BlockFlow_News
PANews
