Oracle will manage TikTok's algorithm for US users under Trump deal to avoid ban, official says

American tech giant Oracle will receive a copy of TikTok's algorithm to operate for users in the United States, a senior Trump administration official said on Monday.

The proposal is aimed at resolving a long-running effort to wrest TikTok's US operations from its Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance, because of US national security concerns over a Chinese firm potentially manipulating what is being shown to users.

The Trump administration official, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the emerging deal, said they believe the plan will satisfy these concerns.

Full details on investors have not been released. However, the official confirmed that Silver Lake, a private equity firm, is part of the investment group.

Over the weekend, Trump said prominent billionaires – including Oracle founder and CEO Larry Ellison, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and tech founder Michael Dell – could be part of the deal.

The US government would not have a stake in the joint venture nor be part of its board, a senior White House official said.

Under the current terms of the proposal, the joint venture would receive a licenced copy of the recommendation algorithm that keeps TikTok users endlessly scrolling through clips on their smartphones. Oracle would review, monitor and secure US data flowing through the service.

“There can’t be any shared algorithm with ByteDance,” said a spokesperson for the House Select Committee on China.

Trump is expected to issue an executive order later this week that declares that the terms of the deal, the senior White House official said. China still needs to sign off on the framework proposal, and any final deal would still require regulatory approval.

That means the process might not be completed until early 2026, a year after TikTok was supposed to be banned under a law that had bipartisan support but was repeatedly bypassed by Trump.

Former US President Joe Biden, a Democrat, signed bipartisan legislation before leaving office in January that requires ByteDance to sell its assets to an American company or face a ban.

US President Donald Trump, a Republican, extended the deadline several times as he worked to reach a deal to keep TikTok available. He spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping last week.