Activity on anti-“cancel culture” streaming platform Rumble surged following Andrew Tate’s relaunch on the site after he was banned from Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook for breaching rules on harmful content.

On the week of 22 August when Mr Tate announced a “mass exodus” to the platform, daily active users on Rumble surged 45.3% compared to the previous week, according to data collected by digital intelligence company Similarweb.

The former kickboxer turned social media influencer says the platform will offer him the freedom to continue creating content, some of which has been described by women’s charities as containing “extreme misogyny”.

But social media experts say the decision to relaunch on an alternative platform like Rumble is a “well-trodden path” for controversial figures banned from mainstream sites and many struggle to retain the same level of influence they once enjoyed.

‘Deplatforming’ and move to Rumble

Mr Tate gripped social media for months this summer as outrage at his controversial, often offensive, views exploded.

But in late August, he was cut off from his millions-strong following when major platforms banned his accounts for violating their guidelines on harmful content. Some of the most notorious clips show Mr Tate claiming that women are the “property” of men and that women bear “some responsibility” for being raped.

Mr Tate has denied claims that he holds misogynistic views and has accused his critics of taking old footage out of context.

Soon after being banned from mainstream platforms, the influencer announced in an interview with Tucker Carlson on Fox News that he would instead be using Rumble. The streaming platform describes itself as “immune to cancel culture” and is one of the few sites that hosts the infamous conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

Around this time, traffic to Rumble’s site surged.