https://techcrunch.com/2020/09/14/bytedance-wont-sell-tiktok-to-microsoft-or-oracle/

What a whirlwind of a Monday morning. Shortly after news broke that Microsoft is out of the picture in bidding for TikTok’s U.S. operations, and rumors began circulating that Oracle is the winner, China’s state broadcaster CGTN reported that ByteDance will not sell TikTok’s U.S. operations to Microsoft or Oracle, citing sources.

ByteDance, the world’s most valuable startup credited with pioneering algorithmic content recommendation for short videos — a significant key to how TikTok works so well — won’t give its source code to any U.S. buyers, sources told CGTN. A source told the South China Morning Post earlier that the tech upstart has decided not to sell or transfer the source code behind its popular video app.