Amazon has reportedly submitted a bid to acquire TikTok as the social media platform faces a potential ban in the United States due to its ownership by a Chinese entity. This development comes as the U.S. government has set a deadline for TikTok to divest from its Chinese ownership or risk being banned. A Trump administration official confirmed to Reuters that Amazon's bid was made ahead of this looming deadline.
The New York Times has indicated that Amazon's bid is not being taken seriously by the parties involved in the negotiations. The offer was communicated to key government officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. This situation arises from a law enacted last year that stipulates the prohibition of apps owned by entities from adversarial countries, with a 270-day window for divestment.
President Trump has expressed a desire to keep TikTok operational in the U.S. and has extended the divestment window to allow for negotiations to continue, with a final deal needed by Saturday. Other potential bidders for TikTok include a group led by billionaire Frank McCourt and investor Kevin O'Leary.
TikTok has resisted calls for a sale, partly due to opposition from the Chinese government, which has the authority to block such transactions. Reports also suggest that a different proposal is on the table, which would involve creating a new company with majority U.S. ownership while allowing TikTok's Chinese owners to retain a minority stake. This deal, valued at approximately $40 billion, would include the app’s source code but would implement measures to monitor it in the Oracle cloud to mitigate security concerns.