Reddit Co-Founder Alexis Ohanian Aims to Acquire TikTok and Take it On-Chain – CryptoNinjas

Key Takeaways:

• Data Ownership: Ohanian aims to give TikTok users control over their personal data.
• Creator Empowerment: The plan focuses on enabling creators to own their audience and build direct relationships.
• Blockchain Integration: The acquisition strategy centers on integrating TikTok with blockchain technology, potentially transforming the social media landscape.

After much speculation, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has confirmed that he is officially entering the race to acquire TikTok’s U.S. operations. This is more than just an attempt to gain control of a major social media platform—Ohanian envisions a fundamental shift in how these platforms operate, empowering users to control their own data and giving creators greater autonomy.

Partnering with Project Liberty

Ohanian is teaming up with Project Liberty, a consortium founded by Frank McCourt to help reshape the internet to give users control again. Ohanian has been brought in as a strategic advisor, leveraging his social media expertise to support the TikTok “on-chain” initiative — a concept that has the potential to shake the foundations of social media in its current form to the core.

“I’m officially now one of the people trying to buy TikTok US — and bring it onchain,” Ohanian confirmed in a recent post. He reinforced the idea that “Users should own their data. Creators should own their audience. Period.” It embodies an increasing belief that people should be put more in control of how their online data is used and monetized — something that is usually missing from traditional social media paradigms.

What Does “Bringing TikTok On-Chain” Entail?

The agreement will merge TikTok with a blockchain network — which is presumably Frequency, a decentralized social network protocol created by Project Liberty. This protocol is built on Polkadot’s infrastructure and designed to grant users ownership of their data.

Source: VOI Id

This move could allow users to have greater control over their profiles, content, and interactions, allowing them to move their data freely between different applications and platforms. This is a stark contrast to the current status quo, where user data is often siloed within individual social media companies.

Think of the frustrations of content creators: Currently, a creator could devote much of their effort to generating a following on TikTok only to be restricted by the algorithm making their presence — along with their engagement — limited by a platform policy blip. By putting TikTok on-chain, Ohanian believes creators may have greater control over how they build relationships with their audience and monetize those audiences.

A History with Blockchain

It is worth noting that Ohanian is no newcomer to the blockchain and cryptocurrency world. The platform he co-founded, Reddit, has explored blockchain technology in a few different ways previously.

• Investments in cryptocurrency: In 2022, Reddit decided to invest some of its surplus cash reserves in Bitcoin, Ether, and Polygon, demonstrating belief in the long-term potential of cryptocurrencies. They eventually sold the majority of these holdings in 2024 but this move demonstrated a willingness to embrace the technology.
• Collectible Avatars: Reddit introduced Reddit Collectible Avatars, a series of Polygon-based NFTs used as profile pictures. This effort, which has experienced similar fluctuations to the broader NFT market, demonstrated how open Reddit was to the use of NFTs for identity and customization.
• Community Points: Reddit once had a blockchain-based rewards system — “Community Points” — which was meant to reward contributions from individual users within certain subreddits. While the program was ultimately discontinued, it was an important proof-of-concept for how blockchain technology could be used to facilitate community engagement.

However, it is important to recognize that Reddit’s previous blockchain ventures have had mixed success, but reflect the company’s interest in exploring the space and potential use cases. Ohanian, however, also started to build a decentralized social media network for Solana in 2021, but the project fell apart due to its links with disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. This was likely influenced by the collapse of FTX and concerns about its association with some blockchain projects.

It’s not hard to see how those experiences inform Ohanian’s ideas for what TikTok would look like today, potentially with blockchain verticals built in.

The Hurdles Ahead

Naturally, buying TikTok and then merging it with a blockchain is challenging.

• Regulatory Scrutiny: TikTok has faced withering scrutiny from U.S. regulators over its ties to the Chinese government and data privacy concerns. Any prospective buyer will have to overcome these regulatory blocks and answer to worries about national security.
• Technical Complexity: Integrating a massive social media app like TikTok with a blockchain is a complex technical challenge. This will entail an immense amount of resources and know-how to execute an effective migration and keep up the functionality and UX of the platform.
• User Adoption: Getting millions of TikTok users to adopt a blockchain-based platform might not be easy. Most users are not part of the blockchain tech world and are unlikely to be open to this new way of using the platform.

One such example is Reddit’s Community Points: Despite its promising potential, it ultimately failed to achieve widespread adoption and was discontinued. This is a cautionary tale about whether or not people will even consider adopting a new technology to the extent that they will use and employ it in their daily lives, and how important user education and user experience are in bringing a new technology, such as blockchain, into the hands of the masses.

Competition is Fierce

Tech giants, investment firms, and other high-profile entrepreneurs all represent stiff competition for Ohanian and Project Liberty as potential suitors.

Various names have circulated as possible buyers, including:

• Microsoft: The tech giant has previously expressed interest in buying TikTok and it would be a serious player in the game due to its financial resources and technological expertise.
• Perplexity AI: The AI startup has pitched a merger with TikTok’s U.S. operations, and has made a unique offer to include the U.S. government in the ownership structure.
• Jesse Tinsley: The founder of Employer.com has assembled a consortium, including the Roblox chief executive, to make a large offer for TikTok.
• Kevin O’Leary: The “Shark Tank” star has already signed on with McCourt’s consortium to express his interest in buying TikTok.

All of these prospective buyers have strengths and weaknesses, and whether any of them will emerge through the acquisition process is currently unknown.

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The Potential Impact

With Ohanian’s vision of a blockchain-based TikTok in mind, significant challenges lie ahead, but its potential impact on the future of social media is immense. It could potentially usher in a new era of transparency, accountability, and user ownership by providing users with greater control over their data and empowering creators. Should it succeed, this acquisition may prove to be a watershed moment on the road toward a new social media era, one characterized by user empowerment and data privacy. How it pans out is anyone’s guess, but the idea of a user-owned social network has certainly gotten people thinking.