US president Donald Trump indicated that Microsoft is in discussions to acquire TikTok, and expressed a desire to see a bidding war for the video-sharing app, which is owned by Chinese parent ByteDance, reported Reuters.
Microsoft, TikTok and ByteDance did not comment, stated the news agency.
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According to media reports, the White House is said to be negotiating a deal and aims to address the country’s concerns on national security, data privacy associated with TikTok.
Both Donald Trump and Joe Biden have spent years attempting to pressure ByteDance into selling its US operations, citing concerns over national security.
Media reports also state that Oracle, along with a group of investors, is in talks to acquire TikTok.
Oracle already provides much of TikTok’s infrastructure via its server network and would take a central role in managing the app’s operations. This would include overseeing the algorithm, data collection, and software updates, all aimed at minimising Chinese ownership, reported EquityPandit.
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By GlobalDataIn 2020, Microsoft tried to acquire TikTok in partnership with Oracle and Walmart, but later the talks failed. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates even hailed the bid as a “poisoned chalice.”
Trump previously stated that he was in talks with multiple parties regarding the purchase of TikTok and anticipated making a decision about the app’s future within the next 30 days.
Last week, Trump signed an executive order to postpone a Biden Administration ban on TikTok that temporarily took the app offline for its 170 million users in the US.
Although Trump granted TikTok a 75-day delay on the ban, he was the first president to put pressure on ByteDance to sell the app.
On Monday 27 January 2025, Trump, while addressing a gathering of Republican lawmakers in Florida, discussed the proposed sale of TikTok, reported BBC.
“We’ll see what happens. We’re going to have a lot of people bidding on it,” he said.
“If we can save all that voice and all the jobs, and China won’t be involved, we don’t want China involved, but we’ll see what happens,” he added.
So far in January, Perplexity AI has reportedly put forth a revised merger proposal for TikTok’s US operations.
This proposal envisions a new entity merging Perplexity and TikTok US, with the US government possibly acquiring up to a 50% stake following the company’s initial public offering (IPO), reported Reuters, citing a source.
