MARA Holdings Inc., a leading Bitcoin mining company, is set to acquire a 64% stake in Exaion, a high-performance computing firm owned by Electricité de France SA (EDF), for approximately $168 million. The deal, disclosed in a recent SEC filing, is being executed through EDF’s venture arm, EDF Pulse Ventures. MARA may later increase its stake to 75% for an additional $127 million, while EDF would retain a minority position.
This acquisition marks a strategic pivot for MARA, signaling its intent to expand beyond cryptocurrency mining into artificial intelligence infrastructure. Exaion specializes in managing data centers that support high-performance computing, cloud services, and AI workloads. MARA’s focus is on AI inference services, which require less capital than full-scale model training and offer faster deployment for enterprise applications.
The move positions MARA as a diversified infrastructure provider, leveraging its energy expertise and data center capabilities to support sovereign AI systems. This contrasts with competitors like Core Scientific and Hut 8, which primarily serve hyperscale cloud providers.
AI Market Beckons as Miners Seek New Revenue Streams
With tens of billions flowing into the AI sector, Bitcoin miners are increasingly eyeing AI as a lucrative expansion path. Their access to abundant power and deep experience in energy management gives them a competitive edge in supporting AI workloads.
MARA is also doubling down on its Bitcoin treasury strategy, using equity and debt financing to accumulate billions in BTC while holding all mined coins. The company recently raised $950 million to expand its Bitcoin holdings, aiming to become a stock market proxy for the cryptocurrency—similar to the approach taken by MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor.
Following the announcement, MARA’s shares rose 1.8% to $15.67, bringing its market capitalization to $5.8 billion.
