Amazon made a surprise last-minute offer to acquire TikTok, thrusting itself into the high-stakes negotiations over the Chinese-owned video-sharing app just days ahead of a U.S. government-imposed deadline to force a sale or ban the platform outright. The unexpected move adds a new layer of complexity to a deal process already fraught with national security concerns and intense political scrutiny.
According to The New York Times, Amazon submitted a formal bid letter addressed to Vice President JD Vance and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The offer reportedly arrived just ahead of a White House meeting on Wednesday where President Donald Trump was briefed on competing proposals to remove TikTok from Chinese ownership. While Amazon's proposal has garnered headlines, parties involved in the negotiations reportedly "do not appear to be taking Amazon's bid seriously."
Details regarding the value of Amazon's offer were not disclosed. The company declined to comment. TikTok representatives did not respond to media inquiries. The White House confirmed receipt of the offer but did not elaborate.
Shares of Amazon rose 1.3% in afternoon trading following publication of the report.
President Trump has until Saturday to enforce the divestment order, following the expiration of a federal grace period that required ByteDance to sell its U.S. TikTok operations. The administration has signaled it may extend the deadline if a satisfactory agreement is in sight.
The leading bid reportedly involves a consortium of TikTok's existing U.S. investors, including Susquehanna International Group, KKR, General Atlantic, and Coatue Management. Oracle, which currently handles TikTok's U.S. user data and cloud infrastructure, is expected to play a larger role in data oversight and algorithm security under the proposed plan.
Additional potential participants, such as Andreessen Horowitz and Blackstone Group, have been approached to contribute capital and assist in buying out Chinese stakeholders. The proposed deal could be valued at $40 billion or more, sources familiar with the matter say.
The administration has described TikTok as a national security threat due to its Chinese ownership, citing concerns over data access, surveillance, and algorithmic manipulation. The app has more than 170 million users in the U.S.
Amazon's late entry could serve as a strategic hedge or a signal to regulators of broader corporate interest in acquiring the app. Still, the company's bid faces steep skepticism amid ongoing negotiations involving multiple politically connected investors.
Wednesday's White House meeting included Vance, Lutnick, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, according to people familiar with the matter. The discussion centered on whether the Oracle-led investor consortium's proposal sufficiently removes Chinese ownership to satisfy legislative and public concerns.
While the Chinese government initially vowed to block any forced sale, officials in Beijing have since moderated their stance. President Trump has reportedly floated the possibility of softening certain tariff measures in exchange for Beijing's approval of a deal.
