TikTok’s deadline to either sell or relinquish its US operations is once again drawing near. The 75-day extension that has been delaying the enforcement of a nationwide TikTok ban is set to expire on Saturday, April 5, unless the company finally reaches an agreement to find a new owner. The question remains as to who might potentially acquire the platform and what the outcomes would be if no agreement is reached. Here’s a summary of the current situation:

Potential Buyers

President Donald Trump has indicated that a deal could be imminent and might be finalized before the deadline. However, the specifics of such an agreement remain unclear. Several interested parties have emerged, including YouTuber MrBeast, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and Perplexity AI. Oracle, which had previously attempted to purchase TikTok in 2020 and played a key role in the platform’s earlier negotiations to address national security concerns, is also a contender.

Depending on which bid is successful, TikTok’s future could look significantly different. ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, is unwilling to allow another company to take control of the app’s valuable recommendation algorithm. This means that a new owner would have to reconstruct TikTok’s core feature. For instance, Perplexity AI has stated that it would undertake the task of reverse-engineering the app’s “For You” feed, making it open source and implementing a Community Notes-style fact-checking feature. Meanwhile, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, who has joined a group of investors known as “Project Liberty,” has hinted at a vision for TikTok that incorporates blockchain technology.

Alternative Option

There is also a potentially less disruptive alternative being considered. The White House is exploring a deal that would allow TikTok’s existing US investors to “roll over their stakes into a new independent global TikTok company,” according to The New York Times. Under this arrangement, Oracle could potentially oversee TikTok’s US data while ByteDance retains control of its algorithm, as reported by the Financial Times in March.

This option would likely result in a smoother transition compared to a full-scale sale, which would require a new owner to rebuild a significant part of the app. Certain aspects of this proposal are similar to the terms of a previous agreement between TikTok and Oracle, known as Project Texas. However, the legality of such a deal is uncertain, as Politico has pointed out. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by former President Joe Biden last year, mandates the divestment of TikTok and its algorithm.

Moreover, it is unclear whether Chinese officials would be willing to approve such an arrangement. Although Trump has suggested that he could use the threat of tariffs as negotiating leverage, the outcome remains uncertain. “We’re dealing with China as well, and we’ll see how that goes,” Trump told reporters over the weekend.

No Agreement

If Trump’s proposed “deal” is not finalized by Saturday, the consequences are uncertain. The likely outcome is that nothing significant will happen. Trump has indicated that he would probably extend the deadline again if the current extension expires. Although it is unclear whether another extension would be legally justifiable, CNN reports that a second extension might face significant legal challenges if contested in court. In the meantime, it is unlikely that TikTok will cease operations, as it briefly did in January when the ban law initially took effect.