Blog

New York, United States, July 9th, 2026, FinanceWire

The launch of RANK marks a major milestone as TipRanks extends its data and analytics beyond research into investable products.

TipRanks, the leading financial research and investment intelligence platform trusted by millions of investors worldwide, today announced the launch of the Defiance KSM TipRanks Analyst ETF (NYSE: RANK)—the first exchange-traded fund built on a proprietary TipRanks index.

For more than a decade, TipRanks has transformed how investors access and evaluate Wall Street research. By bringing transparency and accountability to analyst recommendations and institutional investment signals, the company has helped level the playing field between retail and institutional investors. Today, TipRanks data powers investment decisions for millions of investors and is integrated into many of the world’s leading banks, brokers, wealth managers, and financial media platforms.

The launch of RANK represents the next evolution of that mission.

Rather than simply providing investors with institutional-grade insights, TipRanks is now enabling those insights to become investable products. The ETF transforms Wall Street’s highest-conviction analyst recommendations into a transparent, rules-based investment strategy, giving investors a systematic way to access the ideas that have traditionally been available only through institutional research.

“At TipRanks, our mission has always been to make institutional-quality investment intelligence accessible to every investor,” said Uri Gruenbaum, CEO and Co-Founder of TipRanks. “Over the past decade we’ve built one of the world’s largest and most trusted financial intelligence platforms. Launching our first ETF is a natural extension of that vision. We’re moving beyond helping investors make better decisions—we’re enabling investment products themselves to be powered by our data. We believe this represents the future of investing.”

The ETF tracks the TipRanks US Momentum Analysts Index, a proprietary methodology that combines two of the market’s most closely followed investment signals: Wall Street analyst conviction and positive price momentum. The index begins with the 500 largest U.S.-listed companies, identifies those receiving the strongest analyst support, and selects the 50 companies demonstrating the strongest momentum, creating a disciplined portfolio that is rebalanced quarterly.

The index was developed using TipRanks’ proprietary analyst performance and recommendation data and is independently calculated and administered by VettaFi, one of the industry’s leading index providers. The ETF is issued by Defiance ETFs, with KSM serving as index sponsor. Together, the partnership combines TipRanks’ proprietary intelligence, VettaFi’s institutional-grade index infrastructure, and Defiance’s ETF expertise to deliver a differentiated investment solution.

“We’re constantly looking for differentiated investment strategies that can provide investors with a measurable edge,” said Sylvia Jablonski, Chief Investment Officer of Defiance ETFs. “By combining TipRanks’ unique analyst intelligence with a disciplined momentum methodology, RANK offers investors a transparent, systematic approach to identifying companies with both strong institutional conviction and favorable market trends.”

The launch also marks the beginning of a broader expansion of TipRanks’ index business. The company has developed a growing suite of proprietary indexes built on its unique financial datasets, creating new opportunities for asset managers to develop innovative investment products based on transparent, institutional-quality intelligence.

As investing continues to become increasingly data-driven, TipRanks believes proprietary analytics, artificial intelligence, and systematic investment methodologies will play a growing role in portfolio construction. The launch of RANK is the first example of how TipRanks’ technology can move beyond research and directly power the next generation of investment products in the US.

About TipRanks

TipRanks is a leading financial technology company dedicated to making institutional-quality investment research accessible to every investor. Its proprietary technology analyzes billions of financial data points to deliver transparent insights on Wall Street analysts, financial experts, corporate insiders, hedge funds, news sentiment, and market trends. Trusted by millions of investors worldwide, TipRanks powers investment experiences for many of the world’s leading banks, brokers, wealth managers, exchanges, and financial media organizations.

About Defiance ETFs

Founded in 2018, Defiance ETFs is a leading ETF issuer specializing in thematic, income, and leveraged exchange-traded funds. Defiance develops innovative investment products designed to provide investors with targeted exposure to transformative market trends and differentiated investment strategies.

About VettaFi

VettaFi is a leading provider of indexing, data, analytics, and digital distribution solutions for the asset management industry. Through its index services and technology platform, VettaFi supports ETF issuers and investment managers with institutional-grade index calculation, administration, and investment solutions.

This content is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute investment advice, a recommendation, solicitation, or opinion. TipRanks and/or the index provider do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information, and its use is at the user’s sole risk. This information should not be construed as a substitute for the ETF’s oSicial documents. The above information does not constitute an oSer to purchase mutual fund units; any purchase of units shall be made solely in accordance with a valid prospectus and immediate reports. The provision of this information does not substitute for personalized advice that takes into account the specific circumstances or needs of any individual.

Contact

COO
Barak Tzachar
barak@tipranks.com

Houston, United States, July 9th, 2026, FinanceWire

Agreement establishes the Company’s first long-term contracted AI hosting relationship — initial 3.1 MW GPU deployment expected to generate approximately $27.9 million in capacity reservation charges, with expansion rights up to 12 MW representing a potential total contract value of approximately $100 million

Envirotech Vehicles, Inc. (NASDAQ: EVTV) (“EVTV” or the “Company”) today announced that its corporate name change to Azio AI, Inc. has been filed and becomes effective Friday, July 10, 2026, with the corresponding ticker symbol change pending confirmation — completing the Company’s transformation into a dedicated AI infrastructure platform following the closing of the Azio AI merger. The Company also announced that it has entered into a power purchase and AI infrastructure hosting agreement with Power Champion Investment Limited (“Power Champion”) representing an expected total of approximately $27.9 million in capacity reservation charges over the initial contract term and establishing the Company’s first long-term contracted AI hosting relationship.

Corporate Name Change to Azio AI, Inc.

Following the closing of the Company’s merger with Azio AI, the Company has filed to formally change its corporate name from Envirotech Vehicles, Inc. to Azio AI, Inc. The name change will become effective on Friday, July 10, 2026. The corresponding change to the Company’s ticker symbol remains subject to confirmation, and the Company will announce the new ticker symbol and its effective trading date, together with any related CUSIP updates, promptly upon receipt of confirmation. Until that time, the Company’s common stock will continue to trade on Nasdaq under the symbol “EVTV.” Management believes the new corporate identity reflects the Company’s strategic evolution into an integrated AI infrastructure platform spanning AI data center development, enterprise GPU compute, digital power solutions and infrastructure services.

$27.9 Million AI Infrastructure Hosting Agreement

Power Champion has placed an initial deposit under the agreement, and the Company expects to provide approximately 3.1 megawatts (MW) of contracted hosting capacity, together with power delivery, fiber connectivity, remote operations, technical support and related infrastructure services. The agreement also provides Power Champion with expansion rights that could increase the deployment to as much as 12 MW, subject to future customer requirements, site availability, infrastructure readiness and the terms of the agreement.

Based on the initial contracted capacity, the Company expects the agreement to generate approximately $27.9 million in capacity reservation charges over the initial contract term, before electricity sales and additional infrastructure services. If Power Champion exercises its expansion rights in full and the deployment is increased to 12 MW, the Company estimates the total potential contract value could increase to approximately $100 million, before electricity sales and additional infrastructure services; however, no assurance can be given that any expansion rights will be exercised or that any additional capacity will be deployed. Additional terms of the agreement will be described in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Building the Infrastructure That Enables AI

Artificial intelligence is no longer defined solely by advances in software or computing hardware. As enterprise adoption accelerates, organizations increasingly require the power, connectivity, hosting, operational support, and digital infrastructure necessary to deploy AI reliably and at scale. Management believes artificial intelligence is creating one of the largest digital infrastructure investment opportunities of the coming decade as enterprise demand shifts from computing hardware alone toward fully integrated infrastructure capable of supporting AI at scale.

The Company is positioning its business to meet that demand by integrating AI hosting, digital power, enterprise GPU compute, high-performance data center infrastructure, fiber connectivity, and managed technical services into a unified commercial offering designed to generate long-term recurring revenue. The Power Champion agreement represents an important step in executing that strategy.

Artificial intelligence may be powered by software. It is enabled by infrastructure. The Company — soon to operate as Azio AI, Inc. — is building the infrastructure businesses need to deploy AI reliably, efficiently, and at enterprise scale.

Strategic Highlights

Building a Recurring AI Infrastructure Revenue Platform

The Power Champion agreement represents more than a single customer deployment. It demonstrates the Company’s strategy of converting digital infrastructure assets into long-term contracted revenue through enterprise AI hosting, power delivery, connectivity, and infrastructure services — expanding beyond GPU-related equipment sales into recurring AI infrastructure, power and data center operations. Rather than competing within a single segment of the AI value chain, the Company is building an integrated AI infrastructure business designed to support enterprise customers across multiple infrastructure requirements while creating diversified, long-term recurring revenue opportunities.

Management believes this commercial model strengthens customer relationships, improves infrastructure utilization, and establishes a framework for future expansion as enterprise demand for AI infrastructure continues to grow. The Company expects the Power Champion agreement to serve as a foundation for additional customer deployments as it expands its AI infrastructure footprint under the Azio AI name. Future deployments remain subject to customer demand, available site capacity, infrastructure readiness, financing, regulatory requirements and other customary business conditions.

Management Commentary

“Artificial intelligence is transforming industries around the world, but AI cannot scale without the infrastructure required to support it,” said Chris Young, Chief Executive Officer. “This is a defining moment for our company. With the merger complete and our name change to Azio AI, Inc. taking effect this Friday, we are unifying our identity around the business we are building: a scalable AI infrastructure platform. Announcing our first long-term contracted AI hosting relationship — an approximately $27.9 million agreement — at the same time demonstrates that this strategy is already converting into contracted, recurring revenue.”

“Power Champion’s commitment and deposit reflect growing demand for reliable AI infrastructure capacity,” Mr. Young continued. “In addition to supplying GPU systems, we are developing long-term recurring revenue through hosting, power and infrastructure services. Our objective is to convert available power and site capacity into recurring contracted revenue while building a platform that can scale with enterprise GPU deployments over time.”

About Envirotech Vehicles, Inc.

Envirotech Vehicles, Inc. (Nasdaq: EVTV) is a technology infrastructure company focused on developing, owning, and operating artificial intelligence data centers, enterprise GPU compute infrastructure, digital power solutions, and digital asset mining operations. Following its acquisition of Azio AI, the Company operates an integrated AI infrastructure business encompassing AI data center development, the sale and distribution of enterprise GPU systems and server infrastructure, high-performance computing solutions, power hosting, and strategic technology investments, serving enterprise and institutional customers across domestic and international markets. Through this diversified AI infrastructure strategy, the Company is positioned to capitalize on the rapidly expanding global demand for AI infrastructure, compute capacity, digital power, and next-generation AI technologies.

For more information please visit: www.azioai.ai and for potential partnerships contact: AI@PhoenixMGMTconsulting.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by words such as “may,” “will,” “could,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” “continue,” “potential,” “ongoing,” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the anticipated effectiveness and timing of the Company’s corporate name change and the anticipated timing and confirmation of any related ticker symbol or CUSIP updates; the expected capacity, revenue, reservation charges and services under the Power Champion agreement, including any exercise of expansion rights; the Company’s ability to capitalize on accelerating demand for AI infrastructure, enterprise GPU compute, digital power solutions, data center development, and digital asset infrastructure; the Company’s plans to continue expanding its digital infrastructure platform through AI data center development, enterprise GPU compute solutions, power hosting services, digital asset mining operations, strategic infrastructure investments, and additional commercial partnerships; the Company’s ability to maximize utilization of its power resources while creating multiple long-term revenue opportunities; the ability to continue deploying modular digital infrastructure at the Company’s South Texas site; the anticipated deployment and scaling of NVIDIA B200 and B300 GPU systems; the ability to advance and execute against the Company’s commercial infrastructure pipeline; the anticipated development of the Company’s footprint; the ability to monetize power assets across multiple complementary revenue streams, including AI data centers, enterprise compute infrastructure, power hosting, and digital asset mining operations; customer demand for AI infrastructure, enterprise compute, and digital infrastructure; the Company’s ability to build a scalable platform designed to serve that demand and create long-term shareholder value; and the Company’s broader business strategy and long-term growth objectives.

These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Most of these factors are outside the Company’s control and are difficult to predict. Factors that may affect actual results include, but are not limited to, the risk that the name change or the related ticker symbol change does not become effective on the anticipated timeline or at all, the Company’s limited operating history within AI infrastructure and compute operations, project scope, engineering challenges, supply chain constraints, installation timelines, energy availability, finalization of site usage rights, regulatory considerations, equipment performance, ability to raise capital required for expansion activities, changes in digital asset markets, evolving compute demand, market conditions, the Company’s ability to successfully integrate the combined business following the completion of the merger, the risk that the anticipated benefits and synergies of the merger are not realized, the risk of unexpected costs, charges, or expenses resulting from or relating to the merger, potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the completion of the merger, risks related to the diversion of management’s attention from ongoing business operations during the post-closing integration period, the risk that required stockholder approval for the conversion of preferred stock issued in the merger as required by rules of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (the “Conversion Proposal”) is not obtained, and additional risks and uncertainties described in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC, which are available at www.sec.gov. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements except as required by law.

Contact

Phoenix MGMT & Consulting
Press@PhoenixMGMTConsulting.com

Singapore, Singapore, July 9th, 2026, FinanceWire

Investment Positions Trident to Build a High-Margin, Recurring-Revenue Enterprise AI Business Through Licensing, SaaS, White-Label Deployments and Strategic Channel Partnerships While Expanding Artificial Intelligence Across Its Growing Digital Infrastructure Ecosystem

Trident Digital Tech Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq: TDTH) (“Trident,” “TDTH,” or the “Company”), a Singapore-headquartered enterprise AI and digital infrastructure holding company, today announced a strategic equity investment in Digital Innovations Group (“DIG”), owner and developer of the proprietary IRMA Engine, an advanced enterprise artificial intelligence platform. The investment establishes Trident as DIG’s commercialization partner across Asia-Pacific and Africa and marks another significant milestone in the Company’s transformation into a diversified enterprise AI platform focused on building scalable, recurring software revenue alongside its expanding digital infrastructure operations.

The transaction significantly advances Trident’s artificial intelligence strategy by positioning the Company to commercialize enterprise AI solutions through multiple recurring revenue channels, including enterprise software licensing, software-as-a-service (“SaaS”) subscriptions, white-label deployments, implementation services, managed AI solutions, strategic channel partnerships and long-term enterprise support agreements. The commercialization strategy is designed to establish multiple complementary revenue streams while strengthening long-term customer relationships across both government and private-sector markets.

Unlike many emerging AI software companies that must first establish customer relationships and commercial distribution channels, Trident intends to leverage its existing digital infrastructure ecosystem, enterprise relationships, and expanding government partnerships throughout Asia-Pacific and Africa to accelerate commercialization of the IRMA Engine. Through years of building digital identity infrastructure, cybersecurity platforms, government technology solutions, financial inclusion initiatives and digital commerce ecosystems, the Company has established a strategic foundation capable of supporting enterprise AI adoption across some of the world’s fastest-growing technology markets.

The commercialization strategy also builds upon Trident’s growing portfolio of sovereign-scale digital infrastructure initiatives. The Company’s previously announced Ghana digital tax platform is expected to support the onboarding of approximately 530,000 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (“MSMEs”) during its initial rollout and is supported by previously disclosed projected platform economics of approximately US$800 million over its initial five-year operating horizon. The addition of enterprise artificial intelligence is expected to enhance these digital ecosystems while expanding recurring software, platform licensing, and AI-enabled service opportunities across Trident’s growing customer base.

Under the partnership, Trident will lead commercialization of the IRMA Engine, an integrated enterprise AI platform designed to unify marketing automation, customer engagement, communications, intelligent workflow automation, operational intelligence, business analytics, knowledge management, and enterprise decision support within a single scalable platform. The Company intends to deploy IRMA through enterprise licensing, SaaS subscriptions, white-label solutions, managed service providers, reseller networks, strategic alliances, and industry-specific implementation partners, creating multiple avenues for long-term recurring revenue growth while increasing customer lifetime value.

The Company intends to pursue a complementary commercialization strategy across its two principal growth regions. Throughout Asia-Pacific, Trident will focus on enterprise AI deployments, strategic partnerships, software licensing, and channel expansion. Across Africa, where the Company continues expanding its digital infrastructure initiatives and government relationships, Trident plans to integrate AI into digital identity platforms, financial inclusion initiatives, SME enablement, government modernization, and digital transformation programs. Every major digital platform the Company deploys represents a future opportunity for AI integration, workflow automation, intelligent analytics, and recurring enterprise software revenue.

Beyond commercialization of the IRMA Engine, Trident intends to embed artificial intelligence as the intelligent operating layer across its broader technology ecosystem. Integrating AI throughout the Company’s digital identity, cybersecurity, government technology, and digital commerce platforms is expected to enhance operational capabilities, improve customer outcomes, strengthen competitive differentiation, and create significant opportunities to cross-sell enterprise AI solutions throughout its expanding ecosystem.

The combination of enterprise AI software, recurring SaaS revenue, sovereign digital infrastructure, government technology relationships, and regional commercialization capabilities represents a differentiated business model that positions Trident well beyond a traditional stand-alone software company. Rather than building enterprise AI in search of customers, the Company intends to commercialize the IRMA Engine through digital infrastructure ecosystems, enterprise relationships and government engagements it has already established across Asia-Pacific and Africa, providing a unique pathway toward customer acquisition and long-term recurring revenue generation.

“Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming the intelligent operating layer across virtually every enterprise application,” said Soon Huat Lim, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Trident Digital Tech Holdings Ltd. “Our investment in Digital Innovations Group represents considerably more than a technology investment—it establishes the foundation for a scalable enterprise AI business built upon recurring software revenue, long-term customer relationships, and commercial distribution throughout Asia-Pacific and Africa. By combining the IRMA Engine with Trident’s established digital infrastructure platform, government relationships, and regional market access, we are positioning Trident to capitalize on one of the most significant technology transformations of the coming decade while creating meaningful long-term value for our shareholders.”

“We designed the IRMA Engine to become an enterprise-scale AI platform capable of transforming how organizations communicate, automate workflows and make strategic decisions,” said Michael Woloshin, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Digital Innovations Group. “Trident’s expanding presence throughout Asia-Pacific and Africa, combined with its digital infrastructure expertise and growing government relationships, provides an exceptional commercialization platform to accelerate enterprise AI adoption across some of the world’s fastest-growing markets. Together, we believe this partnership creates a compelling opportunity to deliver enterprise-grade AI solutions that generate measurable value for governments, enterprises and organizations pursuing digital transformation.”

This strategic investment is the beginning of a broader enterprise AI growth strategy designed to expand Trident’s software portfolio, strengthen recurring revenue opportunities, deepen enterprise customer relationships, and support future AI-focused acquisitions, strategic partnerships, and technology platform expansion. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated throughout enterprise operations worldwide, the Company believes it is uniquely positioned to capitalize on the convergence of enterprise AI, digital infrastructure, and intelligent automation across high-growth international markets.

About Trident Digital Tech Holdings Ltd.

Trident Digital Tech Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq: TDTH) is a Singapore-headquartered digital infrastructure holding company focused on building and operating sovereign-scale technology platforms across emerging markets. The Company’s strategy centers on entering high-growth economies through trusted digital identity infrastructure and expanding across adjacent government technology, digital commerce, cybersecurity, AI, enterprise software, and transaction-driven service verticals.

TDTH’s active initiatives include national digital identity infrastructure mandates, MSME digital tax formalization platforms, national digital commerce ecosystems, enterprise cybersecurity deployments, and AI-powered technology commercialization initiatives spanning Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. Through strategic partnerships, joint ventures, acquisitions, and technology-driven platform deployment, TDTH aims to establish scalable long-term digital infrastructure ecosystems serving both public and private sector markets.

With active operations and strategic initiatives in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, and Asia-Pacific markets, TDTH is positioning itself to capitalize on one of the world’s largest long-term opportunities in digital transformation infrastructure, enterprise AI deployment, and sovereign-scale technology modernization.

For more information, visit: https://tridentity.me

About Digital Innovations Group and IRMA AI Engine

Digital Innovations Group (“DIG”) is the developer of the IRMA AI Engine, an AI-powered marketing automation and enterprise engagement platform designed to help businesses, brands, agencies, and organizations automate content creation, campaign execution, customer acquisition, audience engagement, lead generation, and performance reporting across digital channels through an integrated Quantum Intelligence framework.

IRMA AI Engine is designed to function as a scalable AI-powered execution ecosystem capable of helping organizations move from strategy to real-time implementation through automation systems, AI-assisted workflows, campaign management tools, customer engagement infrastructure, data-driven operational insights, predictive campaign intelligence, simulation-led planning, and transparent proof-of-execution reporting.

The platform is designed to support enterprise organizations, publicly traded companies, agencies, e-commerce operators, and regional business networks seeking scalable AI-powered marketing, automation, customer acquisition, audience targeting, multi-channel execution, managed service deployment, and white-label AI marketing capabilities across global markets.

For more information go to: www.irmaengine.ai and for potential partnerships contact: AI@PhoenixMGMTconsulting.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the binding LOI, the proposed strategic partnership, the anticipated equity investment by Trident in Digital Innovations Group, the launch and commercialization of IRMA Engine Asia, the Company’s strategic initiatives, expansion plans, projected market opportunities, estimated market size and growth rates, platform scalability, anticipated partnerships, potential acquisitions, operational deployment expectations, monetization opportunities, regulatory developments, government contracting processes, Nasdaq compliance matters, and future business performance. Words such as “expects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “intends,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “targets,” “projects,” “estimates,” “potential,” “continue,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, including risks related to completion of due diligence, negotiation and execution of definitive agreements, market conditions, the accuracy of third-party market estimates and projections, regulatory approvals, operational execution, cybersecurity risks, strategic partnership developments, technology deployment, customer adoption, commercialization efforts, government contracting processes, Nasdaq compliance matters, capital market conditions, geopolitical developments, and other factors described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements except as required by law.

Contact

Phoenix MGMT & Consulting
Press@PhoenixMGMTConsulting.com