Kevin O’Leary, a Canadian entrepreneur, is rallying a consortium for a potential acquisition of TikTok, offering an initial bid ranging between 20,000 and 30,000 billion dollars, a substantial 90% reduction from its previously estimated value, as reported to CNBC on Friday. The platform had been valued at 220 billion dollars in 2023.

O’Leary noted that any acquisition of TikTok would likely exclude data related to user preference-based algorithms. It’s improbable that the Chinese government would sell these algorithms, so the acquisition would mainly involve obtaining the valuable national brand TikTok and its 170 million users, albeit without access to user data, according to O’Leary.

To navigate this challenge, a potential buyer would need to replicate these algorithms using U.S.-based code and act as an administrator to transition the platform from “TikTok China” to “TikTok USA.” This significant undertaking contributes to the substantial reduction in valuation, as explained by O’Leary.

The recent passing of a bill by the lower house of the U.S. Congress further complicates TikTok’s future, requiring the social network to sever ties with its Chinese owner, ByteDance, or face potential exclusion from U.S. digital stores.

Despite these hurdles, O’Leary remains cautiously optimistic, estimating a 50% likelihood of a ban and forced sale of the social media giant early next year, following the U.S. presidential elections. He is actively preparing for this potential scenario.