TikTok’s possible buyers, from Elon Musk to MrBeast

TikTok’s Chinese parent company has just over two months to find a buyer for the app’s US business or face a nationwide ban, after getting a time extension from President Donald Trump.  There is already competition to own it.

Any purchase would have to satisfy the government’s national security concerns over its owner, ByteDance, and its ties to China. So far, the company hasn’t been able to solve that problem, and has been resistant to being acquired. It’s taken so long to find a solution that the app almost was banned on Jan. 19, per US law. Instead of enforcing the law, Trump issued an executive order delaying the ban and giving ByteDance 75 more days for a sale. “I have a warm spot for TikTok that I didn’t have originally,” Trump said while signing the order from the Oval Office.

It’s unclear whether ByteDance is open to selling the popular video service; it has spent most of the past year rejecting the idea of a sale, which could fetch upwards of $50 billion. Bill Ford, a ByteDance board member and Chief Executive Officer of General Atlantic, told Bloomberg Television that the company thinks there may be solutions “short of having to sell.”

It also remains to be seen whether Trump’s extended deadline will pass legal scrutiny. According to the national security law, an extension for the sales process was only allowable if a deal was already in progress, and no such agreement has been announced.

Still, there will be no shortage of interested acquirers for TikTok. The app boasts 170 million monthly US users and has become a major driver of culture and politics among young Americans. Trump prides himself on his deal-making abilities, and in this case his vote matters: Any purchase agreement for TikTok will require his approval and assurance that the new arrangement does, in fact, satisfy the country’s national security concerns.

So who will buy TikTok? Here’s a list of known suitors and others who could potentially be vying for the app.

Who has already said they want to buy TikTok?

Frank McCourt and Kevin O’Leary

McCourt, a billionaire and former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, has teamed up with Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary on a bid for TikTok, which they say has already been submitted. McCourt, who’s worth $2.4 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, said that the group does not need to buy the software algorithm that recommends content to TikTok users. This could make his bid more appealing to ByteDance and the Chinese government, which are unlikely to sell that proprietary technology. McCourt also suggested this week that he’d be open to an arrangement that includes involvement from the US government. “I’m OK with whatever is legal,” he told CNBC.

MrBeast

MrBeast. Image: Cooper Neill/Getty Images

The popular YouTuber, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is talking to several investment groups that are trying to buy the app. That includes one group led by tech entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley, founder of Employer.com, which announced a bid this week and included Donaldson on its list of investors. Donaldson, though, is spreading his chips around. “Several potential buyers are having ongoing discussions with Jimmy, but he has no exclusive agreements with any of them,” a spokesperson told Bloomberg. Donaldson will play more of an operational role than a financial role in any bid, his spokesperson added.

Who Are Trump’s Preferred TikTok buyers?

Elon Musk

Musk is not only the richest man in the world — his net worth is $440 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index — but he’s also one of Trump’s top advisors and the owner of another social networking company, X, the site formerly known as Twitter. Most importantly, Chinese government officials have also discussed the idea of Musk owning TikTok. He may be one of the few potential acquirers that could get necessary approvals from officials in both the US and Beijing. Trump was asked this week if he was open to Musk buying the service. “I would be if he wanted to buy it,” the President replied.

Larry Ellison

Larry Ellison. Image: Aaron Schwartz/Sipa/Bloomberg

Trump also said that he would be open to Oracle Corp. Chairman Larry Ellison owning the platform. “I’d like Larry to buy it, too,” he said at the same event this week with Ellison standing just a few steps away. Ellison, who is worth $209 billion, has supported Trump, as has Oracle’s CEO Safra Catz, which could make a deal more likely. Oracle is also a major tech and infrastructure partner for TikTok and already stores the app’s US data. When Trump tried to force a sale of TikTok four years ago toward the end of his first term, Oracle was selected by Trump to acquire TikTok before the deal fell apart. Oracle, though, is saddled with debt from a previous acquisition and is investing much of its spare cash in building data centers.

The US Government

Trump has said repeatedly that he wants TikTok to be partially owned by “The United States of America.” He suggested Tuesday that a new investor should buy the app and “give half” to the US in exchange for some kind of “permit” so that it can operate in the country. It’s unclear how this arrangement might work, and there are limited examples of the US government taking a stake in a private business, or owning a powerful digital media company. It’s also unclear whether such an arrangement would be approved by government officials in China, who are likely to have a say in any deal. Still, Trump believes he holds the power to force a new buyer’s hand and give the government a financial stake in TikTok’s future.

Who Else Might Want TikTok? 

Meta

Mark Zuckerberg. Image: Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg

Meta Platforms Inc. already controls the largest stable of social networking products in the world, including Facebook and Instagram, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is better than arguably anyone at building massive audiences for such products online. The company already has an established advertising business that could benefit tremendously from adding TikTok’s app to its mix of services. Unfortunately for Meta, that success and dominance is exactly why a deal is unlikely. Meta is facing intense antitrust scrutiny, and federal regulators in the US are already trying to break the company up. Adding yet another social networking service of TikTok’s size is probably out of the question.

Google

Google already owns YouTube, the world’s premier video platform, and also has a robust advertising business that would pair nicely with TikTok. It has deep knowledge and experience with online video creators, which would make it an appealing landing spot for the people who make a living by posting videos to TikTok. But like Meta, Alphabet Inc.’s Google is fighting antitrust allegations, and the US Justice Department found late last year that it illegally monopolized the online search market. The idea of regulators approving the addition of yet another major advertising platform is unlikely.

Amazon

Amazon.com Inc. already has experience operating a video service — it owns streaming platform Twitch — and has nearly $72 billion in cash or equivalents on its balance sheet. Also, Amazon is already a TikTok partner on shopping features, and could benefit from a deeper integration with TikTok Shop, the app’s ecommerce arm. Amazon is known more for its utility, with its product search engine helping shoppers quickly find what they need and get on with their lives. TikTok would add dimensions in which Amazon has traditionally struggled, like discovery and inspiration. It’s not clear that Amazon is interested in TikTok, but founder Jeff Bezos is developing a closer relationship with Trump that could help impact a possible deal; Bezos and his partner, Lauren Sanchez, joined Trump’s inauguration this week, sitting just a few seats away from the president and his family.

Microsoft

The last time TikTok was for sale four years ago, Microsoft Corp. was an early bidder for the service. Microsoft already owns LinkedIn, so it has some experience with social networking products. Still, CEO Satya Nadella called the sales process from 2020 the “strangest thing” he’d ever worked on, and it’s not known if Microsoft would be willing to go through the bidding process a second time with Trump in the mix.

Netflix

Netflix Inc. has never done a major acquisition and has consistently said it’s not interested in them. But TikTok reportedly approached Netflix about a possible deal back in 2020, and while nothing materialized at the time, Netflix remains a logical option if the streaming giant changes its mind. Netflix stock is near an all-time high, and it’s possible that TikTok would give the company a new short-form video distribution platform to complement its professionally produced film and TV. It could also help Netflix access millions of young American consumers and help it better compete with YouTube.

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