{"id":46132,"date":"2025-01-27T06:52:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T06:52:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/perplexity-ais-new-tiktok-merger-plan-could-see-us-govt-owning-50-stake\/"},"modified":"2025-01-27T06:52:02","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T06:52:02","slug":"perplexity-ais-new-tiktok-merger-plan-could-see-us-govt-owning-50-stake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/perplexity-ais-new-tiktok-merger-plan-could-see-us-govt-owning-50-stake\/","title":{"rendered":"Perplexity AI\u2019s new TikTok merger plan could see US govt owning 50% stake"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>(Originally posted on : Invezz )<\/b><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Perplexity AI has revised its merger proposal to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to include a provision allowing the US government to own up to 50% of the new entity following an IPO, CNBC reported. <\/p>\n<p>The revised proposal outlines the creation of a US-based holding company, &#8220;NewCo,&#8221; combining Perplexity AI and TikTok US.<\/p>\n<p>TikTok briefly went offline in the US last week due to an anticipated ban but resumed operations shortly after <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/news\/2025\/01\/20\/trump-to-tiktoks-rescue-app-partially-restored-in-us-amid-ban-uncertainty\/\">Trump announced a postponement of the ban <\/a>upon assuming office. <\/p>\n<p>The situation remains dynamic, with significant interest from various parties in the platform&#8217;s future.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What will the TikTok deal look like?<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Structure: ByteDance would contribute TikTok US operations, excluding its core recommendation algorithm. In return, ByteDance&#8217;s existing investors would receive equity in NewCo. Similarly, Perplexity AI\u2019s investors would receive a share of NewCo equity.<\/li>\n<li>Funding: The merger would be funded by new third-party capital, which would provide resources for a one-time dividend payment to ByteDance investors and support the new entity\u2019s growth.<\/li>\n<li>IPO plans: The revised proposal envisions NewCo going public with a potential valuation of at least $300 billion, allowing the US government to acquire up to a 50% stake after the IPO.<\/li>\n<li>Valuation: A fair valuation for TikTok U.S. was suggested to be &#8220;well north of $50 billion.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The proposal being considered echoes a strategy described by Steven Mnuchin, Trump&#8217;s former treasury secretary, which involves bringing in new investors to dilute Chinese ownership and comply with US regulations. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The technology needs to be disconnected from China. It needs to be disconnected from ByteDance,&#8221; Mnuchin stated. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s absolutely no way that China would ever let us have something like that in China.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Mnuchin has previously expressed interest in investing in TikTok himself.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Perplexity AI wants TikTok?<\/h2>\n<p>Perplexity AI, a rising player in the generative AI space, surged from a $500 million valuation at the start of 2024 to $9 billion by year-end, driven by increasing investor interest and the AI boom. <\/p>\n<p>By merging with TikTok US, Perplexity aims to bolster its video offerings and disrupt the search landscape further, intensifying competition with OpenAI, Google, and other tech giants.<\/p>\n<p>This proposal comes amid concerns over TikTok\u2019s operations in the US, with the Trump administration demanding a solution to address security and ownership issues. <\/p>\n<p>A merger, rather than a sale, could offer ByteDance a way to retain value while meeting U.S. government requirements.<\/p>\n<p>Perplexity faces competition from Microsoft, Oracle, and potentially Elon Musk, all vying for a <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/news\/2025\/01\/25\/who-could-buy-tiktok-in-the-us-top-3-contenders\/\">stake or partnership with TikTok<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>US President Donald Trump commented on the ongoing interest surrounding TikTok&#8217;s ownership and potential deals during a flight aboard Air Force One.<\/p>\n<p> While addressing reports about Oracle&#8217;s interest in acquiring TikTok&#8217;s global operations, Trump denied having discussed the matter with Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, despite speculation.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Numerous people are talking to me. Very substantial people. We have a lot of interest in it, and the United States will be a big beneficiary. &#8230; I\u2019d only do it if the United States benefits,\u201d Trump said, emphasizing the need for the U.S. to gain from any potential arrangement.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/news\/2025\/01\/27\/perplexity-ai-tiktok-merger-plan-us-govt-50-percent-stake\/\">Perplexity AI&#8217;s new TikTok merger plan could see US govt owning 50% stake<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/\">Invezz<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/news\/2025\/01\/27\/perplexity-ai-tiktok-merger-plan-us-govt-50-percent-stake\/\">Source link <\/a><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(Originally posted on : Invezz ) Perplexity AI has revised its merger proposal to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to include a provision allowing the US government to own up to 50% of the new entity following an IPO, CNBC reported. The revised proposal outlines the creation of a US-based holding company, &#8220;NewCo,&#8221; combining [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3947362387,"featured_media":46133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46132"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3947362387"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46132"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46132\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}