Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo credit: World Economic Forum / Sikarin Thanachaiary, under Creative Commons license Software giant Microsoft is in talks to buy popular social app TikTok, according to a report [paywall] from the New York Times . According to the Times, it's however unclear how advanced the talks between both companies on a possible acquisition are. As of late, TikTok has been the center of scrutiny from U.S. regulators, with U.S. President Trump even stating of looking into a possible ban of the app in the US. TikTok is owned by ByteDance, a private Chinese technology company valued at above $100 billion by investors. A US-based company like Microsoft swooping in to buy TikTok would likely lessen scrutiny from U.S. regulators, who right now seem to be primarily concerned over the app's Chinese ties. In all, ByteDance seems to be looking to quickly divest TikTok in order to stave off increasing regulatory scrutiny. Only a few days ago, the co
A very big new acquisition has happened in the tech industry, with Okta (NASDAQ: OKTA), the publicly-traded cloud identity and access management software provider, announcing an agreement to buy Auth0, a fellow cloud identity software provider, for a price of $6.5 billion to be paid all with shares. A $6.5 billion exit for Auth0 marks a major win for the startup scene in Seattle, the tech hub where Auth0 is based and also a major win for the company's backers and investors. Auth0 last raised venture funding last year in July with a $120 million Series F round that valued the company at $1.9 billion. Now, it's about to sell for more than triple that amount. Auth0 has raised more than $330 million in total venture funding, with investors including the likes of Salesforce Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Telstra Ventures, Sapphire Ventures, and DTCP. Salesforce Ventures led Auth0's most recent $120 million Series F round. With its acquisition of a fellow cloud identity a