"We can't let this go dark" —  Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary offers $20 billion for TikTok

Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary posted a snippet of his interview with CNN on Instagram on January 18, 2024. In the clip, he has opened up about his recent bid to buy TikTok for $20 billion cash. When asked if the company is interested in accepting his offer, O'Leary explains that the reason TikTok faced a shutdown is due to American servers, like Oracle, needing to comply with US laws.

He mentions that failure to do so would result in hefty fines of $5,000 per user every 12 hours, totaling 1.7 billion users. O'Leary emphasizes the need for the company to sign a valid Letter of Intent (LOI) with him and Frank McCords. This would allow President Biden to grant a 90-day extension, as permitted by Congress. After this period, the deal would then be handed over to the incoming Trump administration.

O'Leary stresses the importance of keeping TikTok operational, as 60% of his companies' digital spending relies on the platform, and 6.5 million American families make a living from it. The Shark Tank investor believes that the path forward is clear, unless another valid LOI is presented, which would allow Biden to approve the 90-day extension and prevent TikTok's shutdown.

"Six and a half million American families make a living off this. We can't let this go dark. The path is clear unless someone else has an LOI they can sign so that Biden can actually grant the 90 days tomorrow, it's going to go dark," Kevin O'Leary says.

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Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary believes that the decision to sell TikTok relies on the Chinese President

The Shark Tank judge Kevin O'Leary has made it clear that buying TikTok's algorithm isn't an option. The Supreme Court has already decided that owning the algorithm isn't possible. Despite this, O'Leary believes TikTok is still worth $20 billion, even without the algorithm. He says that he is willing to negotiate but he hasn't seen the company's assets yet.

"We think it's worth 20 billion. We're willing to talk about it. We don't know with certainty. We haven't seen the assets of the company. But the whole point is, everybody involved in this Xi (Chinese president), Trump, six and a half million American businesses, we got to keep it lit up," Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary explains.

O'Leary emphasizes the importance of keeping TikTok operational, citing the impact on 6.5 million American businesses and the potential consequences of upsetting President Trump. He believes the decision ultimately rests with Chinese President Xi. To further discuss the matter, O'Leary plans to meet with 20 senators and lawmakers in Washington.

In a separate Instagram post uploaded on January 18, the Shark Tank judge has shared another interview with Yahoo Finance where he talks further about TikTok. Kevin O'Leary believes his competitive advantage in acquiring TikTok lies in its existing user base of 170 million. Solving concerns around data security and privacy would further boost his numbers.

He plans to expand TikTok's reach globally, particularly in countries where the app was previously banned, such as India. O'Leary aims to create the world's largest television network based on freedom of speech and democracy, which he calls Project Liberty.

"We've got a big plan here, and it starts with saving Tiktok. But we don't stop there. We grow this much bigger, and we think we can," Kevin says.

By addressing data security concerns, O'Leary hopes to regain the trust of American users who are skeptical about online platforms. He acknowledges that this issue isn't unique to TikTok, but rather a problem plaguing all social media companies. O'Leary's vision for Project Liberty involves not only saving TikTok but also growing it into a much larger entity.

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Shark Tank is currently airing its season 16 on ABC.