Datavault AI said Thursday it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire NYIAX, a move that gives the company control of blockchain-based exchange technology that the company says will give a broader boost to institutional trading platforms for data and other tokenized real-world assets.
The announcement converts an October 13, 2025 letter of intent into a formal merger agreement and deepens a relationship that already included licensing agreements and a technology alliance announced in March 2025.
The company said NYIAX’s infrastructure will be combined with Datavault AI’s Information Data Exchange and its DataScore, DataValue and Data Vault AI tools to support tokenization, valuation and trading across a range of digital and real-world assets.
Datavault AI framed the deal as a way to bring the institutional market structure into categories that have historically been dependent on bilateral deals, particularly advertising and proprietary data.
An 8K filed on March 19 shows that the transaction is structured as an all-stock merger. Datavault AI agreed to issue 78,947,368 shares of common stock to NYIAX shareholders at closing, while certain non-accredited investors would instead receive cash tied to the shares’ five-day VWAP.
Two NYIAX-nominated directors will also join Datavault AI’s board when the deal closes. Based on Datavault AI’s last share price of around $0.76, the base stock overweight implies a value of around $60 million, although that figure is inferential and could move with the stock.
Datavault AI said the combined platform is expected to support several planned marketplaces, including the flagship Information Data Exchange, an International Elements Exchange for tokenized commodities and industrial assets, an American Political Exchange and NYIAX’s advertising marketplace.
The company also tied the acquisition to its January 28 agreement with Sports Illustrated to explore a sports-focused exchange of rights to the name, image and likeness of athletes and related digital assets, which the company has planned for a commercial launch in the second half of 2026.
NYIAX has long marketed itself as an exchange built on Nasdaq Financial Framework technology for guaranteed advertising contracts, with the goal of providing more standardized pricing, transparency and operational efficiencies for media transactions.
Datavault AI and NYIAX first announced a commercial and IP alliance in March 2025, pitching the combination as a way to transform data and digital rights into more liquid and tradable assets. Thursday’s deal shows that Datavault AI is now seeking to fully own that infrastructure rather than just work around it.
Datavault’s AI shares last traded around $0.78, down about 14% on Thursday, giving the company a market cap of about $462 million.
Revelation: This article was edited by Estefano Gomez. For more information about how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.