Photo Credit: Getty Images
With the deadline to sell TikTok fast approaching, President Donald Trump has declared he is "very close" to brokering a deal that could prevent the social media giant from being banned in the United States. The video-sharing app, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, faces a shutdown if a sale isn't finalized by April 5, and a flurry of high-profile buyers are vying for a piece of the action.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump revealed that multiple investors are in the final stages of negotiations. While he didn't confirm a front-runner, reports suggest that major players like Amazon, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and billionaire investor Frank McCourt are all in the mix. Even YouTube superstar MrBeast has expressed interest in acquiring TikTok as part of a larger investment group. Meanwhile, tech giant Microsoft, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, and British entrepreneur Tim Stokely—founder of OnlyFans—have all reportedly thrown their hats into the ring.
One of the most intriguing possibilities is a deal that would see ByteDance retain ownership of TikTok's powerful algorithm but lease it to a new entity managing the app in the U.S. The White House is said to be considering this option, which could allow TikTok to continue operating while addressing national security concerns. The U.S. government has long argued that TikTok poses a data privacy risk, fearing that Chinese authorities could access the app's vast user data—a claim that Beijing has repeatedly denied.
The clock is ticking. If no deal is reached by the deadline, TikTok could once again be pulled from U.S. app stores, a move that would send shockwaves through its 170 million American users. The app briefly went dark in January after the law took effect, only to be revived when Trump delayed the ban. Now, he faces a critical decision: let the law stand or extend the deadline once more.
Should TikTok disappear from the U.S., rival platforms stand to gain. Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts would likely see a surge in users, while Amazon's Twitch and even lesser-known Chinese platforms like Xiaohongshu (RedNote) are poised for rapid growth. But for now, all eyes are on Trump as he scrambles to broker a deal that could reshape the social media landscape.
