The company responded Monday to a Bloomberg report claiming that Chinese officials are considering allowing Elon Musk to acquire TikTok’s U.S. operations, forcing its parent company, ByteDance, to divest its TikTok stake or maintain the existing U.S. ban. The outlet reportedly used nameless sources who were allegedly familiar with the situation.

“We can’t be expected to comment on pure fiction,” a TikTok spokesperson told Variety.

Musk, the world’s wealthiest individual and owner of Tesla and X, which he acquired for $44 billion in 2022, was reportedly part of a “scenario” discussed with the Chinese government. According to the Bloomberg report, this plan involved X taking “control of TikTok’s U.S. operations and managing the businesses together.”

The Supreme Court seems like it would uphold the upcoming ban

The outlet also noted that it remains unclear whether Musk, ByteDance or TikTok have engaged in any discussions about the alleged deal.

As Blavity reported, Congress initially banned TikTok in April, with additional support from justices in the Supreme Court. The video-sharing app is set to shut down in the U.S. on Jan. 19. Oral arguments held on Friday seemed to show the court was leaning toward upholding the ban.

Could Donald Trump save TikTok?

TikTok argues that the move infringes on the First Amendment rights of millions of app users, but the court apparently agrees that it poses a national security risk.

“The law is only targeted at this foreign corporation, which doesn’t have First Amendment rights,” Justice Elena Kagan told TikTok’s lawyer, per CNN. She compared the situation to past concerns about foreign influence, saying, “In the mid-20th century, we were very concerned about the Soviet Union, and what the Soviet Union was doing in this country.”

While both sides of the political aisle believe China could use TikTok as a tool to spy on Americans, President-elect Donald Trump previously said that he may find a solution.