US President Donald Trump has said he would support Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla, if he decided to purchase the social media app TikTok. Trump's remarks came as the platform, used by 170 million Americans, faces a potential ban unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells its US operations due to national security concerns.

When asked about Musk's involvement, Trump said, "If he wanted to buy it, I'd be open to it", as per a Reuters report. Trump also revealed discussions with TikTok's major stakeholders and floated the idea that any sale should benefit the US financially, suggesting, "Buy it and give half to the United States of America."

The controversy surrounding TikTok has drawn criticism from free speech advocates, who argue that banning the app is excessive. ByteDance has defended itself, stating that TikTok's user data is stored in the US on Oracle servers, with content moderation handled domestically.

Reports last week from Bloomberg suggested that Chinese officials might consider selling TikTok's US operations to Musk, though the company has denied these claims.

TikTok's fate hangs in the balance as debates over its ownership and security concerns intensify.