Mark Cuban wanted to invest in TikTok before it was TikTok: ‘Oh my God, I loved it’

Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban tried to invest in the popular video-sharing app TikTok in its early stages, before it was even called TikTok, but the company turned him down.

What happened: According to a CNBC report citing a recent interview with a social media personality Jules Terpakin which the Cuban once tried to invest Musicalthe video-sharing app that eventually became TikTok because he “loved” using the platform.

“I remember when it was Musical.ly and I was trying to invest… Oh my God, I loved it because I could just turn it on and immediately there were 15,000 people live to talk to,” Cuban reportedly agreed Terpak in the interview.

The report indicates that Cuban’s bid to invest in Musical.ly was unsuccessful because the company did not need the money and did not want to attract new investors.

Musical.ly was eventually acquired by the TikTok parent company Bytedance for around $800 million in 2017. The video-sharing app then merged with TikTok about a year after the acquisition.

See also: TikTok in court: Supreme Court prepares to weigh national security risks

Cuban prefers the older version of the app, which focuses on music and dance. These days, TikTok feels more “entrepreneurial” and business-oriented, especially since launching its revenue share program, Cuban said in the interview.

“I liked it better when it was about dances (and) music…Now it’s a business,” he said.

It’s not clear how much Cuban would have invested in Musical.ly if he had the opportunity. It’s also not clear exactly how much he would have made from the investment.

Assuming Cuban could have invested at a similar valuation to what Bytedance did for Musical.ly in 2017 ($800 million), the investment would have increased tremendously. According to a report by Economic Times, TikTok parent company Bytedance has valued itself at around $300 billion in a recent buyback offer made to investors.

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