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Abu Dhabi’s AI firm buys stake in TikTok owner at $220bn valuation

By Pramod Kumar
REUTERS
Asia has been among the few bright spots in the global economy, though China's slowdown clouds the outlook

Abu Dhabi-based artificial intelligence firm G42 has acquired an over $100 million stake in ByteDance, valuing the Chinese owner of TikTok at $220 billion, Bloomberg News reported, citing informed sources.

G42, owned by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, who is the UAE’s national security adviser, bought the stake from existing investors in recent months through its 42XFund. Another fund also purchased into ByteDance at $225 billion shortly after, the sources added.

The current valuation is a substantial discount to the $300 billion that TikTok’s owner set during its recent share buyback program.

However, ByteDance’s valuation in the G42 transaction doesn’t yet reflect the potential after-effects of the Silicon Valley Bank collapse, the report said.

TikTok, short-form video app, is considering separating from its parent to help address US concerns about national security risks.

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