WASHINGTON, January 28. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump said Microsoft is interested in buying TikTok from Chinese company ByteDance.
"I would say yes," Trump said, adding that there is "great interest in TikTok" from several companies. He did not disclose the names of other American companies interested in acquiring the service.
According to CNBC, the US administration is selecting potential candidates to buy 50% of TikTok shares. The main candidates are the owner of SpaceX, Tesla, and X, Elon Musk, and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison.
Former US President Joe Biden signed a law in 2024 forcing Chinese company ByteDance to sell or cease operations of TikTok in the US by January 19, 2025. Trump signed an executive order after his inauguration on January 20 to delay the blocking of this platform in the US. The Republican told reporters that the United States should have the right to half of TikTok, but did not explain what this means exactly.