Media

TikTok Denies Report Claiming China Is Looking to Sell to Elon Musk

‘PURE FICTION’

Bloomberg reported that the Chinese government were considering a merge between TikTok and social media app X Monday.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk leaves the Phillip Burton Federal Building on January 24, 2023 in San Francisco, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A representative for TikTok has denied a report claiming that China was working on selling the app to Elon Musk to keep it operational in the United States. On Monday, Bloomberg reported that Chinese officials were “evaluating a potential option that involves Elon Musk acquiring the US operations of TikTok” and that the Chinese government had discussed the option of Musk’s social media app X taking “control of TikTok US” and running “the businesses together.” While Bloomberg noted that it was “unclear whether Musk, TikTok and ByteDance have held any talks about the terms of any possible deal,” a representative for TikTok swiftly shut down the report in a statement to Variety. “We can’t be expected to comment on pure fiction,” the representative replied when asked for comment by the outlet. Musk bought Twitter in 2022 in a $44 billion deal where he subsequently relaunched it as X. Unless the Supreme Court issues a new ruling, TikTok is set to be banned in the U.S. starting Jan. 19 for allegedly posing a national security threat by falling under the jurisdiction of the Chinese Communist Party.

Read it at Variety

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