Microsoft said it will continue discussions to buy TikTok’s business in the US after its chief executive Satya Nadella held talks with US President Donald Trump on Sunday.
Mr Trump, who faced pressure from some of his advisers and members of the Republican party, gave the US technology company and ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, 45 days to seal the deal, according to Reuters.
TikTok, which is popular with young audiences for its short-form videos, has about one billion users worldwide.
Microsoft said it intends to complete the acquisition by September 15 and expects to invite other US investors to come in as minority stakeholders.
"Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the president's concerns," the Redmond-based firm said in a statement, adding that it is committed to "acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the US".
It, however, said the discussions were “preliminary and there can be no assurance that a transaction will proceed”.
“We do not intend to provide further updates until there is a definitive outcome to our discussions,” Microsoft said.
The acquisition would result in Microsoft, the world's largest software company, owning and operating TikTok in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Mr Trump revealed his plans to ban the social media app within the US last Friday after American officials and politicians expressed security concerns in recent weeks that it was being used by Beijing for nefarious purposes.
TikTok, however, denied having links to the Chinese government.
Microsoft pledged to strengthen the security and privacy of the app once it acquires it.
“The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users, as well as appropriate security oversight by governments,” it said.
“This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy and digital safety protections.”
The software maker said it would ensure that the private data of the app's American users is transferred to the US.
“To the extent that any such data is currently stored or backed-up outside the US, Microsoft would ensure that this data is deleted from servers outside the country after it is transferred,” the company said.
It, however, did not disclose the expected value of the deal.
The acquisition would help Microsoft reinvigorate its advertising business through a huge supply of video content.
The company, whose advertising-backed businesses including the Bing search engine, MSN news service and LinkedIn, disclosed last month that its search advertisement sales grew by 1 per cent to $7.7 billion (Dh28.3bn) over the past year.
Microsoft purchased LinkedIn for $26.2bn in 2016.
TikTok, which was launched in China in 2016, was released in the US in 2018 after ByteDance’s purchase of lip-synching app Musical.ly.
It said it had hired about 1,000 people in the US this year and plans to hire another 10,000.
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Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
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The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
Company%C2%A0profile
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
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Power: 819hp
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Romain Gary
Penguin Modern Classics
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
No_One Ever Really Dies
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