TikTok Bids for Liberty as Billionaire Frank McCourt Submits Project

Project Liberty, an internet advocacy nonprofit founded by businessman Frank McCourt, announced on Thursday that it has submitted a proposal to purchase TikTok from ByteDance, just 10 days before the U.S. ban on the social media app takes effect.

The People's Bid for TikTok, backed by Project Liberty and its partners, aims to relocate the app to an American-owned platform while prioritizing users' digital security, as stated in a recent announcement.

"Project Liberty's founder, McCourt, stated that they have presented a proposal to ByteDance to create a new TikTok platform that prioritizes people and utilizes American-made technology. This approach would allow the platform to remain operational without relying on the current algorithm and would enable millions of Americans to continue using it."

A spokesperson for Project Liberty confirmed that ByteDance has received a proposal from the nonprofit, but the financial terms of the offer are not being disclosed.

CNBC has reached out to TikTok for comment.

On Friday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the ban, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden last April, and ByteDance has repeatedly refused to sell TikTok and appealed the legislation on First Amendment grounds.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in favor of the law on Dec. 6, stating that the government's national security justifications for the ban were compelling enough.

TikTok stated in a Dec. 9 court filing that the ban would result in a loss of $1.3 billion in revenue and earnings for U.S. small businesses and social media creators in just one month, and that more than 7 million U.S. users do business on TikTok.

The Chinese-owned app is banned under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which prohibits its distribution and maintenance.

TikTok's migration to an open-source platform is the goal of the People's Bid, which is part of Project Liberty's effort to create a more user-controlled internet.

The initiative collaborates with Guggenheim Securities and Kirkland & Ellis, and is supported by digital safety advocates, investor Kevin O'Leary, and World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee.