U.S.-Led Group Including Oracle, Silver Lake and Andreessen Horowitz Would Control About 80% of TikTok in Proposed Deal
Proposal would create an American-dominated entity to run TikTok’s U.S. operations, extend enforcement deadline and raise legal and congressional questions
President Donald Trump’s effort to avert a U.S. ban on TikTok moved toward a concrete agreement as reports said a coalition led by Oracle, Silver Lake and Andreessen Horowitz would take majority control of the app’s American operations.
The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that the proposed structure would place roughly 80% of TikTok’s U.S. business into a new entity controlled by the U.S.-led group, with Chinese investors retaining the remainder. The arrangement is intended to comply with the divestment law passed by Congress last year, which bars Chinese ownership above a 20% threshold for apps deemed a national security risk.
Under the reported terms, the new entity would be overseen by an American-dominated board that would include at least one person designated by the Trump administration. Current U.S.-based investors in ByteDance, including Susquehanna, KKR and General Atlantic, were reported to be part of the new ownership group and to be rolling their stakes into the U.S.-controlled company. The app would continue to use technology licensed from ByteDance, the Chinese parent company, while U.S. user data would be hosted on Oracle’s servers, the Journal said.
Trump told reporters that he had “reached a deal with China” and planned to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping to confirm the terms. The White House has also delayed enforcement of the divestment law until Dec. 16 by executive order, the latest postponement of a ban that had at one point been set to take effect in January.
Officials from both countries reportedly negotiated the framework in Madrid during trade talks. The White House cautioned that details remained unofficial. "Any details of the TikTok framework are pure speculation unless they are announced by this administration," a senior White House official told the Journal.
Supporters of preserving the app in the U.S. have pointed to the participation of well-known American technology firms and investors as a way to secure U.S. control over operations. Opponents and legal experts, however, have raised concerns about whether licensing arrangements that leave critical technology, including recommendation algorithms, tied to ByteDance could meet the statutory test underpinning the divestment law.
Michael Sobolik, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and a China expert, said a deal that simply licensed the algorithm from ByteDance could “likely violate the law.” Some investors, including people connected to General Atlantic, have expressed interest in "rolling" their existing stakes into the new U.S. entity to defer capital gains liabilities, a move that outside critics say could complicate compliance with the 20% cap on Chinese ownership.
Congressional reaction remains uncertain. Lawmakers who have pushed the divestment requirement have emphasized eliminating Beijing’s ability to influence content or user data, and some have signaled skepticism that a licensing arrangement and U.S. board oversight would sufficiently remove Chinese control over TikTok’s recommendation systems.
Beijing’s state-run People’s Daily described the reported outcome as reflecting consensus built on "mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation," signaling some level of agreement from Chinese authorities over the outline of the deal. It remained unclear how formal Chinese approval would be structured or whether additional concessions would be required.
The proposed arrangement would be a novel solution to a rare intersection of national security concerns, trade talks and private investment. If implemented, it would leave a U.S.-dominated consortium running the vast majority of TikTok’s U.S. operations while preserving some ongoing technical ties to ByteDance through licensing. Critics argue that such ties could leave open pathways for influence or data access, while proponents say the shift in ownership and data hosting arrangements would address the administration’s primary security concerns.
Legal analysts and members of Congress are expected to scrutinize any final terms for compliance with the divestment statute and to assess whether the mechanics of the deal meaningfully insulate U.S. users’ data and the platform’s recommendation systems from foreign control. Meanwhile, the administration’s extension of the enforcement deadline gives negotiators additional time to attempt to finalize a structure that can clear both regulatory and political hurdles.
The reported proposal represents the latest chapter in a yearlong effort by U.S. officials to address what they say are national security risks posed by Chinese ownership of popular social media platforms. Any firm decision will depend on final approvals by the administration, potential review by Congress and the answered legal questions about whether licensing or other transitional mechanisms conform to U.S. law.