Oracle and U.S. Investors Eye TikTok Takeover Amid National Security Showdown — ByteDance’s Future in U.S. Market Uncertain

Oracle and U.S. Investors Eye TikTok Takeover Amid National Security Showdown — ByteDance’s Future in U.S. Market Uncertain

Edited by: TJVNews.com

A new front has opened in the long-running battle over TikTok’s future in the United States, with several major U.S.-based investors reportedly teaming up with Larry Ellison’s Oracle in a fresh attempt to spin off TikTok’s U.S. operations and avert an all-out ban. As  reported by The New York Post, the proposed deal would involve a strategic reshaping of TikTok’s ownership structure to quell national security concerns while preserving access to its massive U.S. user base.

According to the information provided in The New York Post report, investment firms General Atlantic, Susquehanna International Group, KKR, and Coatue Management are in advanced discussions to acquire additional equity stakes in a restructured U.S.-based TikTok entity. The plan, detailed by The Financial Times and cited by The Post, would involve buying out TikTok’s Chinese shareholders, effectively reducing ByteDance’s control over the app’s American arm.

The goal: create a new U.S. consortium with a clear firewall between TikTok’s operations and Chinese government influence, an accusation that has long dogged the popular short-form video platform.

Oracle, which already functions as TikTok’s cloud services provider, is slated to play a leading role in the deal. As The New York Post report indicated, the enterprise software giant would not only take an ownership stake in the new U.S. entity but also serve as a data security guarantor, ensuring the personal information of over 170 million American users is stored and handled exclusively within the United States.

The company previously spearheaded “Project Texas,” a heavily publicized initiative aimed at convincing U.S. lawmakers that TikTok could operate safely by relocating U.S. user data to Oracle servers. However, Project Texas ultimately failed to satisfy national security hawks in Congress, who viewed ByteDance’s continued ownership as a fatal flaw in the arrangement.

Now, Oracle’s return to center stage signals a second chance for a security-centric compromise — albeit one still fraught with political hurdles.

Despite efforts to restructure ownership, ByteDance reportedly still wants to retain a minority stake in the proposed U.S. spinoff — a detail that could derail the entire transaction, The New York Post report warned.

The reason: Congress passed a law mandating full divestiture, requiring ByteDance to completely sever ties with TikTok’s U.S. operations. Any continued Chinese ownership would violate the spirit — and possibly the letter — of the law, a fact not lost on Senator Tom Cotton, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a vocal skeptic of partial divestment schemes.

As The New York Post’s “On The Money” column recently reported, Cotton has made it clear to Trump administration officials that he will not support any agreement that leaves ByteDance with a seat at the table. The sentiment is widely shared across both parties, as lawmakers increasingly view TikTok as a proxy battleground in the broader struggle against Chinese influence over U.S. digital infrastructure.

The timing couldn’t be more pressing. President Trump, having returned to the White House, recently signed an executive order granting ByteDance a 75-day grace period to finalize a sale — pushing the new deadline to April 5. The reprieve came after ByteDance missed the previous January 19 divestment deadline, which had temporarily activated the Congressional ban on the platform.

Trump, in recent remarks cited by The New York Post, has vowed to “save” TikTok, asserting that the U.S. should retain a 50% ownership stake in any reformed version of the app. He has tapped Vice President JD Vance to oversee negotiations and said his administration is in talks with “four different groups” interested in acquiring the platform.

Notably, Trump has explicitly endorsed Oracle and Ellison’s involvement, indicating that the software behemoth could serve as both a political and technological bridge between policymakers and private investors.

Even if the proposed U.S.-led buyout clears the hurdles in Washington, it may still face resistance from Beijing. The Chinese government has already stated it will not permit the sale of TikTok’s powerful recommendation algorithm, the technological heart of the app’s viral success. Without control of the algorithm, many analysts argue, a U.S.-owned TikTok would be little more than a shell of its current self.

That restriction could become a deal-breaker, especially for Oracle and other U.S. firms tasked with operating a version of TikTok stripped of its core engine of engagement. As The New York Post reported, a potential compromise would allow ByteDance to retain control of the algorithm while Oracle manages the infrastructure — but such a hybrid arrangement could again run afoul of national security demands.

As the April 5 deadline looms, the fate of TikTok in the United States remains uncertain. What’s clear, as The New York Post report emphasized, is that any deal short of complete divestment from Chinese control will likely face fierce opposition in Congress and possibly renewed legal challenges.

For now, the Biden administration is publicly noncommittal, and The White House has confirmed to The Post that no final decision has been made on any proposed TikTok acquisition.

But with national security, free enterprise, and international diplomacy all colliding in one high-stakes negotiation, the next few weeks may determine not only TikTok’s future — but the shape of U.S.-China tech policy for years to come.