President Donald Trump confirmed that Michael Dell is part of the team aiming to buy TikTok’s US operations, alongside Oracle’s Larry Ellison and possibly Lachlan Murdoch. The deal would make TikTok majority US-owned, with its algorithm and operations hosted on American infrastructure.

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Source summarized: Trump says Michael Dell is part of the team buying TikTok

Key Points

• Michael Dell is reportedly part of the consortium bidding for TikTok’s US operations.
• Oracle’s Larry Ellison is confirmed to be leading the group, with potential participation from Lachlan Murdoch.
• US ownership will be the majority, with six of seven TikTok board seats filled by American citizens.
• TikTok’s algorithm and data will remain in US hands, hosted by Oracle Cloud and potentially run on Dell hardware.
• BDT & MSD Partners may be the vehicle for Dell’s investment, though it’s unclear if Dell Technologies is directly involved.
• Trump frames the deal as a national security win and a boost to domestic tech sovereignty.
• ByteDance is under pressure from US law to sell TikTok’s local operations to avoid a ban.
• Historical context with MySpace highlights media interest in social platforms for influence and traffic.
• Trump emphasizes TikTok’s role in political outreach to younger voters during his last election.

Summary

President Donald Trump revealed that Michael Dell has joined a high-profile group of investors vying for TikTok’s US operations, a group already anchored by Oracle founder Larry Ellison. Trump also suggested that Lachlan Murdoch might join the bid, hinting at a media-tech alliance reminiscent of earlier social media land grabs. This move comes amid ongoing efforts to shift TikTok’s control into American hands due to national security concerns tied to its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.

The plan, as described by Trump and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, would transform TikTok’s American business into a majority US-owned entity. Six of its seven board seats would be held by American citizens, and its algorithm—the pièce de résistance of TikTok’s addictiveness—would fall under US jurisdiction. Oracle’s cloud already handles all US TikTok traffic, and adding Dell’s infrastructure could help reassure the public that the platform is domestically anchored and secure. If the deal goes through, it could effectively create a “sovereign SaaS” model for a high-profile social platform.

Trump’s comments also tap into a familiar narrative of tech power, politics, and media influence. He emphasized TikTok’s role in engaging younger voters, framing the acquisition not just as a security measure but as a strategic win for political communication and the economy. Meanwhile, The Register cheekily speculates that Dell and Oracle could position themselves as the backbone of a new American-controlled TikTok, potentially foreshadowing broader ambitions for US tech sovereignty. The move recalls Rupert Murdoch’s ill-fated MySpace experiment, though this time the stakes are higher and the infrastructure ambitions far grander.

• 🤖Trump says Michael Dell is part of the team buying TikTok - Trump confirms Michael Dell’s involvement in the TikTok US deal alongside Oracle’s Larry Ellison, aiming to secure majority US ownership and control of the app’s algorithm.

Summarized by ChatGPT on Sep 22, 2025 at 9:02 AM.