China considers selling TikTok’s to Elon Musk

• Published On: 14 January 2025 at 18:04

According to a Bloomberg News report on Monday, Chinese officials are in preliminary talks about selling TikTok's U.S. operations to billionaire Elon Musk if the short-video app fails to avoid an impending ban.

While Beijing prefers that TikTok remain under the control of its parent company, ByteDance, the discussions reflect mounting pressure on the app's future in the United States, where national security concerns have grown. According to sources cited in the report, TikTok's U.S. operations could be sold through a competitive process or a government-arranged deal, indicating that ByteDance's control over the app is waning.

China's government owns a "golden share" in ByteDance, which several US lawmakers claim gives Beijing significant influence over TikTok. However, ByteDance has stated that this stake "has no bearing on ByteDance's global operations outside of China, including TikTok."

According to one proposal, Musk's social media platform X (formerly Twitter) could take over TikTok's U.S. operations and manage it collaboratively. According to Bloomberg, officials have yet to reach an agreement on the issue.

A TikTok spokesperson called the report "pure fiction," and ByteDance, TikTok, Musk, and China's Cyberspace Administration and Ministry of Commerce did not respond to requests for comment. It is unclear whether ByteDance is aware of these discussions, or whether Musk and TikTok were directly involved in any negotiations.

The potential sale comes as the United States Supreme Court appears to be leaning towards upholding legislation that could force TikTok to sell its US operations or face a ban by January 19, citing national security concerns about its ties with China.