President Donald Trump has granted a third extension of the deadline to TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, allowing another 90 days for the social media giant to finalize a sale to an American buyer. The move, formalized through an executive order, provides TikTok a temporary reprieve from a potential U.S. ban while national security concerns regarding Chinese ownership continue to simmer.
The deadline had been set to expire Thursday, but the extension pushes it into the fall, keeping the platform’s 170 million U.S. users online for now. Speaking aboard Air Force One on Wednesday, Trump said he believes Chinese President Xi Jinping would support a U.S.-based sale, noting that Beijing’s approval would likely be required for any deal to succeed.
The situation stems from legislation signed under former President Joe Biden, mandating that ByteDance divest TikTok or face a forced ban due to concerns over user data and surveillance risks. This law, while currently entangled in legal challenges, has maintained pressure on the company to negotiate a handover that satisfies both Washington and Beijing.
As of now, ByteDance has not confirmed any active buyers or deal negotiations. Previous discussions involving tech giants like Oracle and Walmart stalled amid shifting regulatory demands and political uncertainty. With this third extension, the spotlight once again turns to whether a buyer can be secured in time—or if TikTok’s dance with U.S. regulators is simply delaying the inevitable.