TikTok in talks with Donald Trump administration to avoid full sale of US assets
- ByteDance, the app’s Chinese parent company, is discussing alternatives to a sale of TikTok’s entire US operation, The Wall Street Journal reports
- The talks picked up following China’s passage last week of export rules that would require Beijing’s approval of any sale
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is in discussions with the Trump administration about possible alternatives that would allow the popular Chinese video-sharing app to avoid selling its entire US operation, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The talks with the administration have picked up since last week, when the Chinese government passed new rules restricting the export of artificial-intelligence technology, which could affect the sale of TikTok to a non-Chinese owner, The Journal reported, citing anonymous sources. Options include a sale that involves restructuring TikTok, one person was reported as saying.
TikTok has been negotiating with the US government for weeks after US President Donald Trump set a deadline for its sale, contending that the app posed a national security risk. Trump said a week ago that if a deal was not reached by September 15, his administration would shut TikTok out of the US.
A TikTok representative did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Washington has said TikTok must have an American owner because ByteDance, as a Chinese company, is obligated to hand over personal data of its users to Beijing. ByteDance and TikTok have long denied the allegations.
The app has gained more than 100 million US users in a year.
