Elon Musk swooping in to buy TikTok before a US ban is set to bite? It seems like a stretch, but it could also make some sense, Peter Kafka writes.

Could Elon Musk save TikTok in the US? China weighs option to sell the controversial TikTok social media app's US operations ahead of looming ban

Chinese officials are reportedly exploring a backup plan for TikTok after the Supreme Court appeared unlikely to save it from a US ban. With TikTok’s legal options nearly exhausted, multiple news outlets are reporting that China is considering an option it previously said it wouldn’t: letting ByteDance sell the app.

Americans are going to lose access to TikTok in less than a week, unless China green-lights a sale to what Congress has deemed a non-adversary of the United States — something China is unlikely to do but might.

Chinese government officials are reportedly mulling selling TikTok's US operations to Elon Musk to avoid a complete ban in the country.

Musk acquired X (then Twitter) in October 2022 after a highly publicized back and forth, in which he gave up on the acquisition midway but ultimately closed the deal, paying $44 billion for the platform. X's user base has been on a decline since the acquisition, and advertising revenues have plummeted.

TikTok denied a report that China is exploring a sale of the app to Elon Musk to keep TikTok operational in America amid a looming U.S. ban.

Musk also shared an earlier post of his where he had argued that a ban on TikTok would be contrary to freedom of speech and expression. It is not what America stands for, he said adding that even though the ban will benefit X.

Elon Musk opposed the ban on Tiktok, saying it goes contrary to freedom of speech and expression. At the same time, he called out the ban on X platform in China, describing it "unbalanced".

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