— Alex Heath (@alexeheath) September 14, 2020 Oracle has now taken over Microsoft as favorites to buy short video app TikTok’s US operations. According to a report from Axios, while Oracle is the likely firm to get the deal, there’s a possibility of no deal taking place as well. South China Morning Post noted that due to China’s new regulations on the export of AI, Oracle might not get the app’s much-lauded recommendation algorithm, even if a deal is struck. At the moment, it’s not clear if Oracle will own a majority stake in the app or become a technology partner to run its US operations. Earlier today, Microsoft issued a statement saying that ByteDance has rejected its bid to acquire TikTok: Shortly after this, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to set a deadline of 45 days — ending September 20 — for any US-based firm to complete a deal for TikTok. Reports over the weekend suggested that China would rather see TikTok’s US operations shut down than go through a forced sale. The situation is very complicated, and with time running out, there’s no clear outcome at the movement. Oracle must move rapidly if it wants to complete a deal this week.
