The Globe and Mail has sold its AI-powered analytics and optimization platform Sophi to Atlanta-based analytics company Mather Economics.

A spokesperson for the Globe was not able to tell MiC by press time whether it would retain any staff or assets from Sophi, but Axios reported that Sophi’s 34-person team of full-time staff is expected to join Mather following the all-cash deal.

Sophi began as an internal AI system at the Globe and Mail that analyzed reader and subscriber data to inform decisions on things like newsroom investments, which stories should be behind a paywall and where stories should appear in a layout. It later evolved into an independent subsidiary, offering clients automated workflows and data-driven decisioning on managing subscribers, first-party data, content curation and other elements of running newsrooms. In addition to being used by the Globe itself, it also counts other news organizations in Canada (such as Global News) and around the world (including Reuters, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Advance Local) as clients.

Mather Economics is an analytics company specializing in managing subscription data. It works across several industries, including media, but also telecommunications, ecommerce, lottery, gaming, sports and beverages. It also operates a data insights platform called Listener.

Mike O’Neill, CEO of Sophi, said in a press release that the “complementary strengths” Mather offers will help Sophi “accelerate” its impact with clients.

“Sophi has developed world-class AI capabilities, and Mather’s strength in advisory and consulting services will make it easier for our customers to get the most impact out of our tools,” he said. “Mather’s large install base on its Listener platform allows us to deploy Sophi services to existing customers even more quickly.”

Matt Lindsay, president of Mather, added that the acquisition will help it meet the needs of publishers with a complete suite of AI solutions. He added that it also gave the company “a strong presence in Canada,” adding to offices in the U.S. and Europe.