Tether Taps User Base of Over 650M for Next-Gen AI Expansion

Tether, the company behind the popular stablecoin USDT, is expanding its reach beyond digital currencies. With over 650 million users worldwide, Tether aims to leverage its vast user base to deliver practical AI tools in areas such as health, finance, and sports.

The company's CEO, Paolo Ardoino, sees an opportunity to use smartphones, already widespread even in poorer countries, to distribute smaller AI models without requiring large data centers for every interaction. This approach could provide everyday services to users in developing economies where connectivity and computing infrastructure can be inconsistent.

Tether has been building its AI infrastructure through a developer-grants program supporting local-first AI and payment infrastructure. The initiative is designed around software that can operate on users' own devices rather than depending entirely on centralized cloud services.

The company's enormous existing user base gives it an unusual advantage, allowing Tether to introduce AI products to hundreds of millions of people already familiar with USDT. However, the initiative remains at an early stage, and details about launch dates, prices, or how Tether will monetize the applications are yet to be disclosed.