TikTok suitor Rasner Media suspends bid over China algorithm concerns

Rasner Media CEO Reid Rasner on Thursday announced that he would no longer seek a bid to purchase the controversial social media app TikTok, citing concerns about national security in regards to China.

Rasner, who initially teamed up with Amazon to propose a $47 billion bid for the app, said his offer is still fully funded but accused China of playing a "shell game," after reports surfaced that it intended to release a diluted U.S. spinoff of the app.

The United States has banned TikTok from U.S. app stores if TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance does not divest its shares. But President Donald Trump has repeatedly delayed the deadline, with the latest being Sept. 17.

Rasner Media said that there is "no deal" currently being discussed about TikTok that the company is interested in pursuing because of national security concerns, and any future deals must include the original TikTok algorithm.

“This is a shell game,” Rasner said in a statement. “By withholding the algorithm, China is pretending to comply while keeping control of the engine that drives TikTok - and likely obfuscates what they have been doing to manipulate and spy on Americans. That’s not transparency—it’s deception.”

Rasner said that he supports Trump's vision for the country, including in the digital space, but that no deal China has offered has passed the "smell test."

“Until a legitimate offer is on the table, there is nothing to discuss. The door remains open—but we will never compromise our principles or allow China a backdoor into American lives, data, or devices,” he said. “I will not profit from a deal that enables continued Chinese deception or espionage against the very people we’re trying to protect.”

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.