U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed openness to the idea of billionaire Elon Musk, one of his allies, purchasing the TikTok platform.
When asked if he would support the acquisition of the app by tech magnate Elon Musk, Trump responded: “Yes, I would support it.”
Trump also emphasized the importance of obtaining U.S. government approval for the social media platform, stating that without such approval, TikTok is essentially “worthless.”
The President said he had met with “major stakeholders” of the app and discussed in detail a potential deal that could see TikTok’s value soar to “a trillion dollars” if the U.S. grants the necessary permissions. According to Trump, such an agreement would make TikTok more valuable as the U.S. government would become a strategic partner, ensuring long-term profitability and success.
Just hours after his inauguration on Monday, Trump issued an order delaying the enforcement of a law requiring TikTok to be banned in the U.S. unless it sells its operations to an American buyer or an ally within 75 days.
In recent days, Trump has repeatedly suggested that he could be open to an American buyer acquiring half of the company and running it as a 50-50 joint venture with TikTok’s current Chinese owner, ByteDance.
