Trump made it clear on Tuesday that he’s not against the idea of Elon Musk purchasing TikTok, and even went as far as proposing that the United States could jointly own half of the company.
During an event held at the White House to announce a fresh partnership between private tech companies and the federal government focused on artificial intelligence, Trump responded to questions about TikTok.
Speaking directly to the press, he said if Musk was interested in the acquisition, he would support it. The event included well-known tech leaders like OpenAI’s Sam Altman and SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son.
Musk, who leads Tesla and SpaceX, appeared as a potential buyer just a few days before the app was supposed to stop operating. On Monday, Trump signed an executive order that delayed enforcement of the ban for 75 more days, giving more room for a sale to happen.
There was a brief interruption to the app’s services on Saturday evening, which lasted over 12 hours. This came shortly after the Supreme Court supported legislation requiring ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to sell its US assets if the platform is to continue running within American borders.
Oracle’s Co-Founder Also Mentioned as a Potential Buyer
Another possible buyer Trump pointed to was Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. During the AI partnership event at the White House, Ellison joined leaders from companies like OpenAI and SoftBank for the announcement of a $500 billion project on infrastructure and AI. Oracle, which handles a large portion of TikTok’s data storage, could be a logical candidate for the acquisition.
Trump even turned to Ellison during the event and said, “I have the authority to strike a deal. Let’s start negotiating right now in front of everyone.” That comment was made jokingly, though Trump used it to reinforce his push for American ownership in the social media platform.
After holding talks with TikTok’s current owners, Trump mentioned that he pitched the idea that the buyer should allow half of TikTok’s ownership to go to the US government. On Monday, he again floated this plan, saying such an arrangement would serve both parties well, especially with the American government as a partner.
“They will be getting something that holds more value,” Trump explained, “because having the United States as a direct partner will help them with permits and every other necessary detail.”
Trump Shares Thoughts on TikTok and the Young Vote
When asked whether he has TikTok installed on his device, Trump responded that he doesn’t, though he added that he might download it at some point.
He also shared his opinion about the app’s political influence, saying, “We gained support from younger voters. I think it came from TikTok.” Trump added that he feels emotionally connected to the platform because of that experience.
Exit poll data showed a different picture. According to those polls, Kamala Harris had more support among voters under the age of 30, winning that group with 54 percent compared to Trump’s 43 percent.
