In a CNBC report it was noted that Abu Dhabi royal family owned MGX an AI Fund, owned by Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is to take a stake in TikTok’s US business valued at $14 billion, after MGX recently invested $2 billion in Binance using USD1 World Liberty stablecoins.
Rumors note that the MGX stake might be 15% with a board seat in Tik Tok’s US board. The US president signed an executive order on approving the deal and providing a 120-day window to finalize the details. MGX was created in 2024 by The Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council as a Technology Investment Vehicle with Mubadala and G42 as Founding Partners. His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates announced creation of MGX in January 2024. He hailed it as a technology investment company to enable the advancement and deployment of leading-edge technologies intended to improve the lives of current and future generations.
According to news, Oracle, the private equity group Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi’s MGX will control roughly 45% of TikTok US. Overall, American companies are expected to control just over 65% of the company, with Trump also naming the personal computer pioneer Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch’s Fox as other investors. TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, will retain a 19.9% stake in the US operation.
It is not the first time that MGX and Silver Lake partner to invest in a company. Earlier this year, MGX, joined Silver Lake as a co-investor in the Silver Lake-led acquisition of a 51% stake in Altera. Intel Corporation will retain a 49% stake, to accelerate Altera’s global leadership in programmable semiconductor solutions.
“[TikTok US] will be majority-owned and controlled by United States persons and will no longer be controlled by any foreign adversary,” Trump said. “We have American investors taking it over, running it [who are] highly sophisticated, including Larry Ellison. Great investors, the biggest. They don’t get bigger. This is going to be American-operated all the way.”
China has not publicly made clear whether it will approve the deal. JD Vance, the US vice-president, said the deal valued TikTok US at $14bn. “There was some resistance on the Chinese side,” Vance said. “But the fundamental thing that we wanted to accomplish is that we wanted to keep TikTok operating but we wanted to make sure that protected Americans’ data privacy as required by law.”
He added: “This deal really does mean that Americans can use TikTok, but actually use it with more confidence than in the past. Because their data is going to be secure and it’s not going to be used as a propaganda weapon against our fellow citizens.”
UAE President meets with Open AI CEO
This comes as the president of the United Arab Emirates, which has been spending billions in its push to become a global player in AI, met OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman in Abu Dhabi on Saturday 27th of September as per UAE stated news agency WAM.
Discussions between Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Altman focused on strengthening cooperation between OpenAI and its counterparts in the UAE, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence research and its practical applications.
“This cooperation aligns with the UAE’s ambition to establish an integrated AI ecosystem, supporting the country’s development plans and its drive to build a knowledge-based economy,” the agency added.
