...
By Jordan King
Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
TikTok has reached a deal that will allow it to keep operating in the United States, with a majority American-owned joint venture, but the terms could change the algorithm for users in the U.S.
The platform’s Chinese owner ByteDance has agreed to license its powerful algorithm formula, but it will need to be retrained on U.S. data only, according to the deal, which could alter how it runs.
Newsweek has contacted TikTok, via email outside of normal working hours, for comment
Read More on News
Why It Matters
For years, over concerns about data security and influence, TikTok has not only been a source of friction between the U.S. and China but also a headscratcher, if not a headache, for American officials.
President Donald Trump first started speaking about banning the platform in 2020. In 2024, then President Joe Biden signed a into law a bill that said TikTok would be banned in the U.S. if ByteDance did not sell its U.S. operations to American investors. But, upon arriving in office for his second term, Trump, who credited TikTok with helping him win the 2024 election, decided to extend the platform's deadline to divest.
What To Know
Trump announced in September 2025 that he had reached a deal with Beijing and official agreements were signed in December. On Friday, TikTok announced some of the details of the deal.
Under the arrangement, non-Chinese investors, hold about 80.1 percent of the new TikTok U.S. Data Security (USDS) Joint Venture while ByteDance retains 19.9 percent.
Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX are the three managing investors with 15 percent stakes each, while additional investors include the Dell Family Office and Vastmere Strategic Investments. Other international investors include NJJ Capital, the family office of French entrepreneur Xavier Niel, one Emirati (MGX) and one investment arm of a foundation established by Israeli investor Yuri Milner (Virgo LI),
The U.S. entity is to retrain, test and update the algorithm using only American data stored and secured in Oracle’s U.S. cloud environment, according to TikTok, and experts say this could subtly alter what users see in their feeds over time.
The U.S. entity will license ByteDance’s recommendation algorithm but retrain it solely on U.S. data and manage trust and safety decisions for the American content ecosystem.
American oversight of data and moderation, and the retraining of the algorithm on a U.S.-only dataset, could change the speed, diversity and feel of recommendations compared with the app that is available globally—although the extent of those changes remains uncertain. Newsweek has contacted Oracle, via email outside of normal working hours, for comment.
Kelley Cotter, an assistant professor in the College of Information Sciences and Technology at Pennsylvania State University, told The New York Times that “even small tweaks could at least change the quality of the experience.”
...
What People Are Saying
**President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Thursday: “**I am so happy to have helped in saving TikTok! It will now be owned by a group of Great American Patriots and Investors, the Biggest in the World, and will be an important Voice. Along with other factors, it was responsible for my doing so well with the Youth Vote in the 2024 Presidential Election. I only hope that long into the future I will be remembered by those who use and love TikTok. Thank you to Vice President JD Vance, and all of the others within my Administration, who helped bring this Deal to a very dramatic, final, and beautiful conclusion. I would also like to thank President Xi, of China, for working with us and, ultimately, approving the Deal. He could have gone the other way, but didn’t, and is appreciated for his decision. PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP.”
The TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC. said in its statement on Friday: “TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is dedicated to the safety and security of millions of Americans who create, discover, and connect with what they love on the apps we operate.”
What Happens Next
Scrutiny over any residual influence from Beijing over the algorithm is likely to continue.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines