HIVE Digital Technologies Ltd. experienced a sharp rally in U.S. pre-market trading Monday after its BUZZ HPC division disclosed plans for a major artificial intelligence infrastructure project in the Greater Toronto Area. The stock climbed 33.09% to $3.58, up from Friday's close of $2.69, signaling strong investor appetite for the company's pivot toward data center operations.
Massive AI Facility Planned
BUZZ HPC said it is developing a 320-megawatt AI facility on a 25-acre site it purchased for $58 million. The company expects to invest approximately C$3.5 billion in the project, with initial operations targeted for the second half of 2027. The facility is designed to accommodate more than 100,000 graphics processing units (GPUs), the specialized chips essential for training and running AI models.
Executive Chairman Frank Holmes described AI as "the new industrial base" in a statement, adding that the site could become one of the largest domestically controlled AI clusters in North America. The project underscores a broader trend of bitcoin miners rebranding as AI infrastructure providers amid surging demand for computing power.
Market Context and Trading
While HIVE shares jumped on the Nasdaq, the Toronto Stock Exchange remained closed Monday for Victoria Day, delaying Canadian trading until Tuesday. The pre-market activity on the Nasdaq, which operates from 4:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Eastern, provided the first clear price discovery for the news. HIVE's shift to the main TSX from the TSX Venture Exchange occurred last week, but the holiday pause meant U.S. markets took the lead.
HIVE CEO Aydin Kilic noted that the company now commands over 850 MW of total power globally, comprising 450 MW in active data centers and an additional 400 MW expected to come online in 2027. BUZZ currently operates 5,500 GPUs with capacity for roughly 130,000 GPUs across its infrastructure.
Competitive Landscape
HIVE's announcement places it in direct competition with other crypto miners pivoting to AI. Hut 8 recently signed a $9.8 billion, 15-year lease for a Texas data-center campus, according to Reuters. Rivals such as MARA and Riot Platforms are also under investor scrutiny as the market evaluates how much mining infrastructure can be repurposed for AI workloads.
The company's financial trajectory supports its expansion narrative. In February, HIVE reported record fiscal third-quarter revenue of $93.1 million, a 219% year-over-year increase. Of that total, $88.2 million came from digital-currency hashrate revenue and $4.9 million from BUZZ HPC. Hashrate refers to the computing power used to secure blockchain networks and earn mining rewards.
In April, HIVE completed a private placement of $115 million in 0% exchangeable senior notes, with proceeds earmarked for general corporate purposes, GPU purchases, and data center buildouts. Exchangeable notes are debt instruments that can be converted into shares under specified terms.
Risks and Broader Market
Despite the bullish sentiment, HIVE's forward-looking statements caution about potential deployment timeline changes, cost overruns, weaker-than-expected AI demand, GPU procurement challenges, and network delays. Bitcoin's price, trading near $77,303, also remains a pressure point for the mining segment.
U.S. stock-index futures edged lower Monday amid rising Treasury yields and oil prices, which could weigh on smaller growth and infrastructure stocks if funding costs remain elevated. The TSX is set to reopen Tuesday, and traders will watch whether Canadian stocks follow the Nasdaq's lead or stay cautious.
For now, HIVE's success hinges on its ability to translate land, energy, and capital into tangible AI contracts. The market's patience with the construction narrative will be tested as the company works toward its 2027 operational target.
