Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and a prominent advisor to US President Donald Trump, stated over the weekend that he has no interest in acquiring US operations for the social media platform TikTok.
“I’ve not put in a bid for TikTok, and I don’t have any plans for what I would do if I had it,” Musk remarked during a video link address at a German forum in late January, with the comments being made public on Saturday.
TikTok is facing a US law that mandates the company’s separation from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or risks being banned in the US due to national security concerns about the data it collects from users.
Soon after taking office for his second term, Trump paused the law’s enforcement, which was set to effectively ban TikTok. He had previously expressed openness to Musk purchasing the platform.
However, Musk clarified that he did not want to acquire TikTok, explaining, “I don’t use TikTok personally, so I’m not that familiar with it. I’m not chomping at the bit to acquire TikTok.”
Musk is the owner of social media platform X (formerly Twitter), which he purchased for $44 billion in 2022, emphasizing his goal of safeguarding “free speech.” Since Musk’s acquisition, rights advocates have raised concerns about a rise in hate speech and misinformation on the platform.
In addition to his social media ventures, Musk has supported Trump’s efforts to slash government spending through his “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), which has targeted various federal agencies, aiming to downsize or eliminate them, particularly those not aligned with Trump’s political agenda.
Recently, a US judge issued an emergency order halting Musk’s reform team from accessing personal and financial data stored at the Treasury Department for millions of Americans, as shown in court documents.
During the German forum, Musk also criticized Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, calling them “racism rebranded.” He stated, “I’m against racism and sexism no matter who it’s directed against.”
In the US, Trump’s administration has pushed to dismantle DEI programs across federal agencies, including cutting training initiatives and sidelining workers associated with such programs.
Musk has also voiced strong support for Germany’s far-right anti-immigration AfD party, a controversial stance in a country with a sensitive history due to its Nazi past.
