Oracle in ‘Advanced’ Talks to Take Over TikTok
Software firm Oracle is reportedly in talks with the White House to run TikTok.
That’s according to a report Sunday (March 16) by Politico, which notes that there’s still a roadblock to the deal: concerns about the role TikTok’s Chinese founders will play in the video sharing app’s future in the U.S.
Sources told the news outlet that Vice President JD Vance and national security adviser Mike Waltz are leading the negotiations on behalf of President Donald Trump, with one source describing these discussions as being in the advanced stages.
According to Politico, one of the sources said the deal would require the government to rely on Oracle to oversee the data of American users and make sure the Chinese government doesn’t have a backdoor to it — a promise this source warned would be impossible to uphold.
“If the Oracle deal moves forward, you still have this [algorithm] controlled by the Chinese. That means all you are doing is saying ‘trust Oracle’ to disseminate the data and guarantee there is no ‘back door’ to the data,” that person told Politico.
For example, if TikTok’s algorithm isn’t entirely rebuilt by its American owner or if TikTok’s Beijing-based parent firm ByteDance maintains a role in its operations, the algorithm could still have vulnerabilities that could be exploited by the Chinese government, the report said.
The proposed deal follows an effort from 2023 dubbed “Project Texas” in which TikTok gave Oracle access to its algorithm, source code and content moderation materials in a bid to ease national security concerns.
But those concerns were never eased, leading Congress to pass legislation last year requiring ByteDance to find a new owner for TikTok or find a new owner for the popular app by Jan. 19. That deadline came and went with no deal, leading TikTok to briefly go dark.
Then Trump took office and halted the ban, giving ByteDance until April 5 to find a new owner for TikTok. Oracle’s name had been floated as a possible owner soon after Trump extended the deadline. Last week, the president said TikTok had interest from four potential buyers.
Writing about the ban earlier this year, PYMNTS noted the impact TikTok can have on driving revenue for businesses and entrepreneurs who use it to sell their wares.
Research by PYMNTS Intelligence shows that nearly 80% of millennials and Gen Z consumers turn to social media for financial advice, while shoppers from Generation Z are 117% more likely to purchase products from influencers.
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