Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian joins Frank McCourt’s effort to acquire TikTok’s U.S. operations, serving as a strategic adviser specializing in social media. 

McCourt describes his TikTok buyout plan, also known as Project Liberty, as ‘The People’s Bid’. Essentially, it is a proposal to operate the social media platform using technology that allows users to control how their data is used and shared. 

According to McCourt, Ohanian will help validate the project’s technical approach while communicating its benefits to non-technical audiences impacted by the technology.

Ohanian, who founded Reddit with his University of Virginia roommate and later sold it to Conde Nast in 2006, brings experience from his return to Reddit in 2014 as executive chair where he led a turnaround. His investment portfolio includes stakes in technology companies like Instacart, Patreon, and OpenSea. His role in Project Liberty will center on promoting the effort, focusing on social media.

“[Ohanian’s] unique vision and deep personal commitment to user empowerment through social media platforms align perfectly with our transformative approach,” McCourt said in a press release.

Blockchain-Based Approach Promises User Control

“I’m officially now one of the people trying to buy TikTok US — and bring it on-chain,” Ohanian posted on X, referencing the decentralized, blockchain-based platform that Project Liberty plans to use as the foundation for giving users more control over their online data.

Project Liberty stated in the press release that if its bid succeeds, the technology “will serve as the backbone of the redesigned TikTok, ensuring that privacy, security, and digital independence are no longer optional but foundational.” 

When asked on X what he would name TikTok if purchased, Ohanian responds: “TikTok: Freedom Edition.”

The bid comes amid ongoing regulatory uncertainty, with McCourt and partners submitting their proposal in early January as a deadline approached requiring ByteDance to sell or face a ban. 

The app briefly shut down in the U.S. before service was restored following President Trump’s statement about reviving access. Trump subsequently granted a 75-day delay in enforcing the ban and tasked VP Vance with overseeing the sale process.

Multiple contenders have emerged for TikTok’s U.S. operations. Microsoft is among companies looking to take control, while AI startup Perplexity AI proposed merging with TikTok’s U.S. platform and giving the U.S. government a stake. 

Additional bidders include a group led by tech entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley, featuring YouTube personality MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson), and Wyoming entrepreneur Reid Rasner.

McCourt reported that ByteDance is only “lightly” engaged in the process, having not retained a banker or defined assets to be sold. The billionaire acknowledged ByteDance might choose to shut down the app rather than sell it, despite its use by approximately half of America’s population.