Perplexity AI bids to merge with TikTok US amid looming ban, source says

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: USA Today

Published 5:00 p.m. ET Jan. 18, 2025 | Updated 6:26 p.m. ET Jan. 18, 2025


U.S. search engine startup Perplexity AI submitted a bid on Saturday to TikTok's Chinese parent ByteDance for Perplexity to merge with TikTok U.S., a source familiar with the company's plans told Reuters.

TikTok faces a U.S. ban starting on Sunday if it does not cut ties with ByteDance, although President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he would likely give the short-video social-media platform a 90-day reprieve on Monday.

CNBC first reported the offer.

Perplexity would merge with TikTok U.S. and create a new entity by combining the merged company with other partners, the person said. The new structure proposed by Perplexity would allow for most of ByteDance’s existing investors to retain their equity stakes and would bring more video to Perplexity, the source said, requesting anonymity because the matter is confidential. TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2025/01/18/tiktok-ban-perplexity-ai-potential-merger/77809771007/

[PortTack]

1. They'll ruin it and no one will come back

[Igel]

2. TikTok won't sell, I think.

Meaning Trump will be put in the position of enforcing the ban or ignoring Our Democracy's pronouncement.

But a lot of American youth will be greatly pissed off and blame either Trump, Biden, the (R) in Congress or the (D) in Congress, as they would for anything else from a clogged sink to Chicxulub.

[PortTack]

3. TikTok fan here...they won't sell the algorithm, that's what they want. I don't blame them. America's tiktok

Is only 10% of TikTok worldwide. It’s a 350-400 billion $ business

The algorithm used to create TikTok is light years ahead of anything on American based platforms. Mush and meta are too greedy and stupid to create that kind of algorithm.

Musk doesn’t have the money or the investors to buy it. If meta or one 47’s billionaire friends buy it they will ruin it. And ppl will not use it.

[womanofthehills]

4. I don't quite get it as most of TicToc is owned by Blackrock - like all other companies incl Apple, Amazon, Meta, Visa,

Johnson & Johnson, etc.


Already 7,000 American TicToc employees own a part of TicToc.

[et tu]

5. just did a quick search of

Perplexity AI and bezo's is involved and many unnamed
large money donors- sooooo......