Larry Ellison and Abu Dhabi Royals Bargain for TikTok, Still No Sign of Murdoch or Dell
KEY POINTS
- •TikTok signed a deal in late 2025 to form a US joint venture with Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi’s MGX, each owning 15%.
- •ByteDance keeps a 19.9% stake, just under the limit set by US law to avoid forced divestment or bans.
- •An unnamed group of new investors gets 5%, while the remaining 30.1% is held by existing ByteDance affiliates like KKR and Sequoia.
In an epic episode of corporate musical chairs, Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi's MGX each snag a neat 15% slice of TikTok's American pie—as decreed by a memo from CEO Shou Chew that’s more suspenseful than a Senate hearing. ByteDance, taking the role of the reluctant guest, holds onto a 19.9% stake, stubbornly just under the law’s 20% limit meant to stave off bans. Meanwhile, a mysterious 5% chunk disappeared into the hands of unnamed 'new investors,' possibly including explosives experts billionaire Michael Dell and media magnate Rupert Murdoch, who conveniently vanished from the deal's official credits. Larry Ellison, recently Elon Musk’s richest-man nemesis and professional Trump ally, keeps his hands on TikTok's sensitive U.S. data while apparently bidding on Warner Bros. Discovery’s business — because who doesn’t multitask? Also starring Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan from MGX, a royal focused on AI, and Silver Lake co-CEOs Egon Durban and Greg Mondre, veterans of investing in everything from Tesla to Twitter. The White House shrugged and the Chinese foreign ministry answered press with typical diplomatic “competent authorities” brush-offs, leaving Americans wondering if TikTok’s curiosity algorithms will ever recommend something straightforward like ‘How Did We Get Here?’
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TikTok’s US ownership now a corporate blender: Larry Ellison, Abu Dhabi royals, private equity, and some spooky mystery investors all squabbling over 100% of nothing. We’re all just waiting for Elon Musk’s cameo in the next episode.
TikTok’s US business got divided like Thanksgiving pie—15% slices for Oracle, Abu Dhabi, and private equity, while ByteDance clings to the legal crumbs. Calling it a ‘joint venture’ sounds less like business and more like a reality show cast call.
If you thought TikTok’s algorithm was complicated, meet its ownership structure: Oracle, Abu Dhabi’s MGX, Silver Lake, ByteDance, plus 5% mystery investors probably betting on when humans finally unplug.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 12/19/2025 | Author: Dan Whateley,Sydney Bradley
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