TikTok’s fate in the US continues to be in doubt as the Trump administration’s rescue plan for the popular social media app has reportedly been tripped up by its own wave of tariffs on Chinese imports.
A plan for TikTok to comply with the divest-or-ban law by changing its ownership structure, had received the backing of TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, as well as a few US investors and government officials.
Under the proposed plan, Chinese owners can hold less than 20 per cent stake in the US-based version of TikTok, with new investors allowed to take control of half of the app’s US operations, according to a report by The New York Times.
However, the Chinese government will reportedly not let the TikTok deal proceed after Trump announced cumulative tariffs of 54 per cent on China on April 2. ByteDance needs Beijing’s approval on any deal involving the sale of TikTok assets, as per the country’s restrictions on the export of AI technology.
“Maybe I’ll give them a little reduction in tariffs or something to get it done. TikTok is big, but every point in tariffs is worth more than TikTok,” Trump had said during a press conference in March this year.
On one hand, the Chinese government’s approval has emerged as a major hurdle to any TikTok deal. American lawmakers, on the other hand, have pointed out that Trump’s decision to repeatedly extend the deadline for ByteDance to divest TikTok’s US assets violates the law.
Amid the growing uncertainty over the future of TikTok in the US, here’s a look at who is interested in buying the video app, how TikTok got to this point, and what comes next.
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Who all is looking to buy TikTok?
TikTok’s US operations are worth anywhere from $40 billion to $50 billion, according to estimates by CFRA Research analysts. These estimates are based on TikTok’s US user base (115 million monthly mobile users) and revenue when compared with rival apps such as Instagram, Pinterest, and Reddit.
Initially, Trump suggested that he is open to the idea of tech billionaire Elon Musk or Oracle CEO Larry Ellison buying up TikTok in the US. Months later, the US president indicated that multiple parties were interested in acquiring TikTok. “We’re dealing with four different groups, and a lot of people want it… all four are good,” Trump had said.
Oracle, US venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, and other American investors have made a bid to buy out TikTok’s Chinese investors, according to a report by the Financial Times.
Private equity firm Blackstone along with ByteDance’s non-Chinese shareholders, Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic, were reportedly in talks to contribute fresh capital to bid for TikTok’s US business.
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YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, is part of a group of investors that is trying to buy TikTok with a bid of over $20 billion. This group also includes Roblox CEO David Baszuck, head of crypto platform Anchorage Digital’s Nathan McCauley, Employer.com’s founder Jesse Tinsley, and others.
Perplexity AI has also made a play for TikTok to create a new merged entity combining the video app and the AI-powered search engine. As the April 5 deadline loomed, last-minute bidders such as Amazon also threw their hat into the ring. OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely teamed up with a crypto foundation to submit a late-stage plan to bid for TikTok, according to a report by Reuters.
Brief timeline of the TikTok saga
In March 2024, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a report stating that China had allegedly used TikTok to influence the 2022 US midterm elections.
In April 2024, then-US President Joe Biden signed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA) into law after it was passed by the US Congress with considerable bipartisan support.
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In May 2024, TikTok, ByteDance, and a few American users of the app filed a lawsuit challenging the law. They argued that the legislation suppresses the free speech of a majority of the population.
In December 2024, a lower court upheld the law as constitutional. TikTok then moved the Supreme Court seeking an emergency injunction to put the law on hold temporarily.
In January 2025, the US Supreme Court upheld the law. It ruled that the US Congress has legitimate concerns given the app’s ties to ‘foreign adversary’ China.
On January 19, TikTok went offline in the US with the app blocking access to users in the country, with a pop-up message stating: “Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now.”
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On January 21, newly sworn-in US President Donald Trump signed an executive order instructing the US attorney general to not enforce the divest-or-ban law for a period of 75 days.
On March 14, US Vice President JD Vance had expressed confidence that a deal to sell TikTok would be in place by the April 5 deadline. Vance has been placed in charge of brokering the TikTok deal by President Trump.
On April 5, Trump signed an executive order extending the deadline for the TikTok ban by 75 days for the second time.
What happens next?
It is important to remember that the provisions of the divest-or-ban law do not directly target TikTok. Instead, the legislation concerns intermediaries like Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store that make it possible to download the app, as well as cloud service providers like Oracle.
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US Attorney General Pam Bondi has written a letter asking Apple to keep TikTok on its App Store for at least 75 more days, according to a report by Bloomberg. The iPhone-maker has reportedly agreed to do so.
As the trade war between the US and China escalates, TikTok’s situation in the US is likely to become more complex. On Monday, April 7, Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs of 50 per cent on the country if it persisted with retaliatory tariffs.
Though, Trump has said in the past that he would consider lowering tariffs against China in exchange for its approval of a TikTok deal.
