Trump open to Musk or Larry Ellison buying TikTok, plans 10% China tariff
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More news: US President Donald Trump said he would be open to Elon Musk or Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison buying TikTok, as he unveiled a US$500 billion ($797 billion) investment in AI infrastructure at the White House.
The comments came as Ellison, alongside OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman and SoftBank chief executive Masayoshi Son, joined Trump to launch the AI joint venture, named Stargate.
Trump said the new company will invest US$500 billion in AI infrastructure, creating over 100,000 jobs, in what he called "the largest AI infrastructure project by far in history, and it's all taking place right here in America".
Ellison said 10 data centres are under construction in Texas, with 10 more planned.
Trump said the project is in addition to the separate pledge of between US$100 billion and US$200 billion made by Japanese investor SoftBank last month.
Asked about the potential sale of TikTok, the president said he would be open to Musk buying the company, adding, "I'd like Larry to buy it, too".
Meanwhile, Trump told reporters that he is planning a 10% tariff on China, starting as soon as 1 February, after announcing plans for 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada earlier this week.
"We're talking about a tariff of 10% on China, based on the fact that they're sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada," he said.
Trump to unveil up to US$500b AI investment by OpenAI, SoftBank, Oracle
The news: US President Donald Trump is set to announce a multibillion dollar investment in US artificial intelligence infrastructure, led by a new joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle, CBS News first reported.
The numbers: Trump is expected to be joined at the White House on Tuesday evening local time by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison to unveil the USD100 billion ($160 billion) investment.
The size of the investment could grow to USD500 billion over the next four years, according to sources familiar with the deal.
Oracle shares were last up more than 7% on the news. SoftBank shares rose nearly 5%.
The context: The joint venture, named Stargate, will start with a data centre in Texas and eventually expand to other states, the report said.
Trump previously announced a USD20 billion investment from Dubai-based billionaire Hussain Sajwani for new data centre across the US. On Monday, he also rescinded AI guardrails imposed by former President Joe Biden and signed a number of measures to boost US energy development to meet a surge in power demand from data centres.
