After Twitter, Elon Musk could take TikTok too, but it's a big maybe

The clock is ticking for TikTok, with a potential US ban set for January 19, 2025. In an effort to avoid that fate, TikTok recently made its case before the Supreme Court, arguing why it should be allowed to stay. So, the future of the platform is still up in the air.

However, if the court rules against it, TikTok will either have to shut down its US operations or sell its business in the country. Now, a new report has surfaced, hinting at who could end up owning it.

Bloomberg shared a report based on sources familiar with the situation, revealing that Chinese officials are pushing for TikTok to stay under ByteDance's control. But if that's not possible, they might be open to selling TikTok's US operations to none other than Elon Musk, one of Donald Trump's close allies, to prevent a ban.

This all sounds a bit odd, though. TikTok has repeatedly stated it has no plans to sell and would rather shut down in the US if push comes to shove. In fact, the company quickly dismissed the report, calling it "pure fiction."


TikTok's endless video feed has quickly shot up the ranks to become one of the most popular social networks globally. Back in 2018, it surpassed Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube in app downloads, and now it's one of the top apps in the US with 170 million users.

But with its success has come a wave of concern, particularly in the US, where politicians worry that China's Communist Party might have too much influence over TikTok's parent company, ByteDance. In response, the US House of Representatives passed a bill in April, demanding ByteDance sell TikTok or face a full ban in the US.

According to Bloomberg, TikTok's US operations could either be sold through a competitive bidding process or handled directly by the government. This suggests that ByteDance might no longer have full control over the platform's future in the US.

Under this latest potential scenario, Elon Musk's X platform could take charge of TikTok's US business, running it alongside his other ventures. However, no consensus has been reached on this plan, and it's still unclear how much ByteDance is involved in these discussions. Still, a recent report suggested that TikTok CEO sought counsel from Elon Musk.

A sale to Musk would give him even more control over the US information landscape following his acquisition of Twitter in 2022. However, separating TikTok's US operations from ByteDance's Chinese operations is no simple task, and the process could drag on, leaving TikTok's future uncertain.

For US TikTok users, though, there's still hope. With President-elect Donald Trump set to take office on January 20, 2025, there's a chance he might push for a solution to keep TikTok running in the US. Interestingly, during his first term, Trump labeled the app a security threat and pushed for its ban, yet now he might be looking for ways to resolve the issue.