Amazon Makes Last-Minute Bid For TikTok Amid US Divestment Deadline

Amazon has made a last-minute bid to acquire TikTok, the Chinese-owned short-video platform, just days before an April 5 deadline to sell its US operations, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.

The US tech and e-commerce giant’s move adds to the growing uncertainty surrounding TikTok’s future as regulatory pressure mounts.

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok was ordered to divest TikTok’s US business under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which requires the company to sell its US operations to a non-Chinese entity by January 19, 2025, or face a ban.

The company briefly ceased operations in the US on January 18 but resumed service after President Trump signed an executive order extending the deadline by 75 days, setting a new cutoff for April 5.

With less than four days remaining, TikTok’s fate remains unclear. If no sale occurs, the app could be banned, though enforcement details have not been fully outlined.

Several potential buyers have expressed interest in TikTok, including private equity firm Blackstone. Meanwhile, US venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz is reportedly in talks to raise additional outside investment to buy out TikTok’s Chinese investors.

The effort is part of a bid led by Oracle and a group of American investors seeking to separate the platform from ByteDance, The Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

ByteDance has not publicly disclosed progress on a sale, leaving the fate of TikTok’s 170 million US users uncertain