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Will TikTok be banned again or sold?

The TikTok sale deadline is quickly approaching, with several buyers expressing interest

Gerrish Lopez
Written by
Gerrish Lopez
Time Out Contributor, US
tiktok app
Photo: Kaspars Grinvalds / Shutterstock
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TikTok’s future in the U.S. is on the line. President Donald Trump has set an April 5 deadline for its sale, following a Supreme Court ruling that upheld a ban over national security concerns regarding the use of TikTok users' personal data. While TikTok briefly went dark in January, Trump’s executive order delayed enforcement, keeping the app alive for now. With the deadline approaching, the question is who will buy TikTok?

ByteDance insists TikTok isn’t for sale, but Trump claims there’s "tremendous interest" from potential buyers. He has suggested a 50-50 ownership split between ByteDance and a U.S. entity as a possible compromise. If no deal is reached, TikTok could be pulled from app stores again. Trump has signaled he might extend the deadline if needed, or he could simply tell the Department of Justice to refrain from enforcing the ban.

Who might buy TikTok?

Among those reportedly interested are Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, billionaire Elon Musk and investor Kevin O’Leary. Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has joined a bid led by billionaire Frank McCourt. Even YouTube megastar MrBeast has hinted he’s in the mix.

Major corporations are also circling. Microsoft has reportedly been in talks, while The New York Times says Amazon has expressed interest. OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely, through his new venture Zoop, has also made an offer. Perplexity AI, a rising U.S. search engine, has proposed merging with TikTok.

Whether TikTok stays under ByteDance, lands with a U.S. buyer, or faces another legal twist, one thing is certain: the clock is ticking, for now.

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