TikTok calls the rumor of a possible sale to Musk “pure fiction”

TikTok has called reports of a possible sale to Elon Musk “pure fiction” and denied them.

TikTok has denied a story that China is thinking of permitting a sale of the social media company’s US business to Elon Musk “pure fiction.”

The statement was made in reaction to a Bloomberg story that stated that if the US Supreme Court maintains an impending ban on the app, Chinese officials are considering a possible sale to Musk.

Justices of the Supreme Court will decide on a bill that would prohibit TikTok by January 19 unless it sells its US business. TikTok has made it clear time and again that it would not sell its US operations.

A representative for TikTok told reporters, “We can’t be expected to comment on pure fiction.”

According to Bloomberg, people with knowledge of the situation stated that one possibility being explored by Chinese authorities is for Musk’s social media company, X, to take over TikTok’s US operations. Requests for comment from X have not been answered.

Donald Trump, the US president-elect, is close to Musk and will be back at the White House on January 20. In order to pursue a “political resolution,” Trump has requested the Supreme Court to postpone its decision until after he becomes office. According to a brief his attorney submitted, Trump “opposes banning TikTok” and would rather handle the situation amicably.

This came after Trump and Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, met at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in Florida last month. Senator Edward Markey and Representative Ro Khanna, both Democrats, have also called on President Joe Biden and Congress to extend the deadline until January 19.

Justices of the Supreme Court seemed likely to support the law during a hearing last week. Throughout the three-hour debates, national security worries over TikTok’s possible use by China for political manipulation and espionage were brought up time and again.

According to the Biden administration, a sale is required to stop the Chinese Communist Party from taking advantage of TikTok.

The proposed ban, according to TikTok, violates the First Amendment rights of its US customers, and the company has always denied any influence from the Chinese government.