After months of uncertainty New US company for Tiktok in place
The future of Tiktok in the USA was hanging in the balance for months. Now the US business officially has new owners. Is the debate about the risks of the popular video app now over?
23.01.2026, 06:08
23.01.2026, 06:11
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- By law, Tiktok should actually be threatened with closure in the USA.
- But President Trump granted the app and its Chinese parent company a delay until a buyer could be found for its US spin-off.
- The hanging game for the popular app is now over.
- There are no surprises when it comes to the company's investors for the US business: As already known, the Californian software group Oracle and the private equity firms Silver Lake from the USA and MGX from Abu-Dhabi each hold 15 percent.
- Other investors include computer entrepreneur Michael Dell and French entrepreneur Xavier Niel.
Tiktok's US business, which had been threatened with closure for months due to concerns about China's influence, has officially been incorporated into a new company. As the owner of the popular video app, the China-based Bytedance Group will retain a stake of just under 20 percent in the new joint venture Tiktok USDS. This has no impact on Tiktok's operations outside the USA - including in Switzerland, for example.
The future of Tiktok in the USA seems secure with the reorganization. A law that came into force around a year ago stipulated that Bytedance had to at least relinquish control of its US business in order for the platform to continue operating in the US. President Donald Trump was so determined to keep Tiktok online in the country during his second term in office that he kept extending the deadlines for the transaction in circumvention of the law.
From critic to fan
During his first term in office, Trump himself tried to force the sale of Tiktok by threatening to ban it, but was defeated by the US courts. In the 2024 presidential election campaign, he then found that the platform had helped him gain access to young voters - and campaigned for its preservation.
"I am so glad that I was able to help save Tiktok!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform late Thursday evening (local time). He hoped that he would be remembered for a long time by those who used and loved Tiktok. Trump also thanked China's head of state and party leader Xi Jinping for working with the USA and ultimately agreeing to the deal. He greatly appreciated this, Trump emphasized.
US critics of the deal he pushed through warn that the new structure falls short of eliminating risks to national security.
The Financial Times also reported that Bytedance will retain control of Tiktok's online trading and advertising business in the US. A former investor of the previous owner told the newspaper that the deal would save Tiktok the US market and at the same time leave the majority of the economic benefits with Bytedance.
New owners for US business
There are no surprises when it comes to the company's investors for the US business. As already known, the software group Oracle and the financial firms Silver Lake from the USA and MGX from Abu Dhabi each hold 15 percent. Other investors include computer entrepreneur Michael Dell and French entrepreneur Xavier Niel.
The head of the new joint venture will be Adam Presser, who was previously active at Tiktok. Tiktok boss Shou Chew holds one of the seven seats on the board of directors. Contrary to what Trump once suggested, media mogul Rupert Murdoch is not involved.
Trump saved Tiktok from being shut down in the USA
As Bytedance has its headquarters in Beijing, the future of the app in the US had been hanging in the balance for months. Among other things, there were fears that Chinese authorities could gain access to American data or manipulate public opinion in the US. Tiktok and Bytedance denied this. Nevertheless, under Trump's predecessor Joe Biden, the law was passed to force a change of ownership. Both Biden's Democrats and Trump's Republicans voted in favor.
Trump suspended the implementation of the law as soon as he took office in January and has continued to extend the grace period ever since. He also saw the app as a bargaining chip in the major trade conflict with Beijing.
Warning of media control by the Trump camp
The data of Tiktok's US users is to be stored in Oracle data centers as planned. In recent months, Democrats have warned in view of the planned Tiktok deal that Trump wants to hand over even more control over what people see to "his billionaire buddies".
This is because Oracle is controlled by Larry Ellison, a billionaire supporter of Trump. His family bought the Hollywood group Paramount a few months ago. This was followed by a swift restructuring of the newsroom at the associated broadcaster CBS and, in some cases, more friendly reporting on the Trump camp.
Paramount is also trying to take over its competitor Warner Bros. Discovery, which includes the Trump-critical news channel CNN. However, Warner Bros. Discovery itself has so far preferred the rival offering from streaming giant Netflix for its studio and streaming business.
Newly trained algorithm
There has been much debate in recent years about Tiktok's algorithm - the software that decides which videos are shown to users next. In the USA, there were fears that China could manipulate the software.
According to previous information from the US government, the new joint venture received a copy of Tiktok's algorithm software. This is now being screened and retrained with data from US users, it was said. Some critics of Trump's Tiktok deal warned that this does not provide enough security. The US law stipulates that neither the Chinese government nor Bytedance may have control over the algorithm.
Storing the data under Oracle's control in the US and monitoring the software by the US company was part of a plan years ago with which Bytedance wanted to allay concerns in America.
