TikTok in the United States is about to see significant change as a new US-based algorithm is introduced in the name of "protecting Americans' data and US National Security."
After over five years of talks to ban TikTok because of supposed national security concerns, a sale is set to be finalized. On January 22, if the Chinese government approves, TikTok in the United States will be 50% owned by investing firms and meet the requirements of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act signed into law by President Biden.
According to a report from the Associated Press, TikTok has signed agreements with Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi state-run MGX. These entities will own 15% stakes each, with other unnamed investors bringing it to 50% US investment, and 19.9% will be held by ByteDance, and 30.1% held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors.
That's enough to ensure TikTok isn't banned in the United States, but it does mean some changes behind the scenes that may affect users. Trump friend Larry Ellison co-founded Oracle, and Silver Lake is an investment firm that previously invested in Twitter.
Under the new deal, there will be a seven-member majority-American board of directors. It will be subject to terms that "protect Americans' data and US national security."
Oracle will store US user data, and an internal TikTok memo that revealed this information stated that users will continue "enjoying the same experience as today." Advertisers won't be affected by the change.
What is changing is how US users will interact with the platform, as the algorithm is being changed. The TikTok algorithm will be retrained on US user data, excluding data from everywhere else, to "ensure the content feed is free from outside manipulation."
The new joint US venture will be responsible for content moderation and policies within the country. It isn't clear how this will affect the content users can see and post within the United States.
The TikTok ban timeline
The saga to ban TikTok in the United States goes back to June 2020 when influencers on the popular platform convinced followers to reserve thousands of seats for a Trump rally, leaving seats empty. While there's no way of knowing if this was the true catalyst of the original ban, it was quickly followed by swift action from President Trump to ban the app along with WeChat, citing "national security."
TikTok has been dealing with the threat of a ban since 2020
The ban was challenged, and went through, was blocked by a judge, then a specific ban for government devices went into effect in December. At that point, Trump had lost the election and his focus was on overturning the results, and the ban entered a legal battle limbo.
The ban was challenged again and again until finally, in June 2021, President Biden revoked President Trump's executive order. However, in the same order that revoked the ban, Biden asked the federal government to evaluate threats posed by China-based apps.
Nothing was said of a TikTok ban again for most of Biden's term, but then the results of the investigation came out. The federal government alleged there was a danger to allowing Americans to be exposed to apps and algorithms controlled by foreign entities.
That led to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act being introduced and ultimately signed during the Biden administration. This would have seemingly been a win for the former President, as he wanted the ban in the first place and was highly adversarial with China and its leaders, but things shifted quickly.
There was a lot of backlash as TikTok was massively popular in the United States, and it seemed highly unlikely that ByteDance would ever divest the US section of the company. After meeting with a GOP donor, Jeff Yass, in March 2024, Trump was convinced that the government banning TikTok was a bad move and would give legal precedence to the government to pick and choose between competing apps.
Yass reportedly held a major financial stake in TikTok. He also used Trump's hatred for Facebook at that time, suggesting banning TikTok would benefit Facebook.
"I don't want Facebook ... doing better. They are a true Enemy of the People!" Trump posted to Truth Social at the time.
TikTok US will be under the control of US investment firms
So, with this new stance to save TikTok, Trump ran with the promise that TikTok would be saved. On the day he was inaugurated, he signed an executive order, which wasn't legally enforceable, to delay the TikTok ban.
It took some time before Apple and Google restored the app to their app stores. Even at the President's urging, the law was clear, and the companies could face heavy fines.
A letter from the Attorney General promised the companies wouldn't be punished for breaking the law. President Trump delayed the ban again and again, citing national security concerns, until finally, a decision was reached.
It seems likely that the Chinese government will approve the TikTok deal, and ownership will pass hands on January 22. There is no telling how long before US users notice a difference in the algorithm or policies on the popular platform.
Many hope it will be business as usual. However, there is some worry that the investment firms' connection to the President and his administration's priorities might influence the new algorithm.
