U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he plans to discuss the future of TikTok with China as negotiations continue over the app’s ownership.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump signaled optimism about reaching a deal.
“There’s a lot of people interested in TikTok, and I think we have a chance of doing something good,” Trump said.
“And we’ll be speaking to China about that also because they’re a party to it obviously. But it would be great to keep TikTok alive, sell it to somebody that’s going to do a great job with it.”
In January, Trump issued an executive order extending the deadline for a ban on TikTok to allow time for a deal. He has since proposed a joint venture in which the U.S. would hold a 50% ownership stake.
“By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands and allow it to [stay] up,” Trump wrote. “Without U.S. approval, there is no TikTok. With our approval, it is worth hundreds of billions of dollars—maybe trillions. Therefore, my initial thought is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners whereby the U.S. gets a 50% ownership in a joint venture set up between the U.S. and whichever purchase we so choose.”
Following the executive order, TikTok confirmed that it is restoring service in collaboration with its service providers.
“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,” the company posted on X.
“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.”
Despite ongoing talks, it remains unclear who will ultimately own the app following Trump’s discussions with China.
