President-elect Donald Trump confirmed Sunday that he will give TikTok a reprieve with an executive order to be issued after he takes office on Monday and that he will push for the popular China-owned social media app to seek a joint venture with a U.S. partner.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump stated, “I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark,” he wrote. “I would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture.” Trump’s comments come hours after use of the platform was disabled late Saturday night for U.S. users.
Trump’s move had been expected, but there’s still no indication from TikTok parent company ByteDance that it will agree to such a deal. Neither ByteDance nor TikTok responded to requests for comment on Trump’s proposed idea that the U.S. would hold a 50% stake in a TikTok joint venture.
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The TikTok ban has been percolating for more than a year amid concerns that ByteDance is gathering valuable intelligence on Americans through the app that has become the dominant social media platform for video sharing. There are significant bipartisan concerns in the U.S. that such information will be weaponized by China’s leaders. Trump said he intends to “make a deal to protect our national security.”
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Trump further stated that “there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.” He also speculated that TikTok with full access to the U.S. market is “worth hundreds of billions of dollars — maybe trillions.”
TikTok soon responded, stating that the company is now in the process of “restoring service” in preparation for the executive order to go into effect.
“We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive,” read the response. “It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States.”
Trump’s move to rescue TikTok is another example of how the President-elect has effectively targeted and embraced the tech industry with which he once had extremely contentious relations. President Joe Biden pursued the ban on TikTok, which formally took effect Jan. 19, out of national security concerns.
EARLIER: The fight for TikTok may not be over just yet.
While speaking with NBC’s Kristen Welker on Saturday, President-elect Donald Trump said he will “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day grace period to avoid getting banned in the U.S. once he takes office on Jan. 20.
“I think that would be certainly an option that we look at,” Trump said. “The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate. We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation.”
Trump added that if he decides to save the social media giant from its Sunday deadline, he would “probably announce it” during his first day in office.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court rejected TikTok’s appeal to remain active in the United States after its Chinese parent company ByteDance failed to sell its stake in the app to a buyer outside of China. TikTok is set to go dark on Jan. 19 if it remains unsold.
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” the Supreme Court wrote Friday morning. “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”
TikTok’s troubles began in April, when President Joe Biden signed a law stating that if ByteDance didn’t sell the app to a non-Chinese entity, it would be banned in the United States. TikTok and ByteDance sued the U.S. government in May 2024 over the legislation, claiming it violated First Amendment rights, but the suit was ultimately overruled.
