TikTok has signed a landmark agreement to sell control of its U.S. operations to a group of American and allied investors, averting a looming nationwide ban and resolving a years long regulatory and political dispute over the social media platform’s ownership and national security risks. Under the agreements signed on December 18, 2025, the Chinese parent company ByteDance and TikTok have committed to forming a new U.S. joint venture with major U.S. investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and the Abu Dhabi-based MGX. The pact is set to be finalized on January 22, 2026, just ahead of the government’s deadline to ensure TikTok’s continued operation in the United States.
The new entity tentatively known as TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will be structured so that a majority of control rests with American-based investors Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX will each hold significant shares, collectively controlling the largest portion of the new company. ByteDance will retain a 19.9% stake, the legal maximum allowed under U.S. foreign ownership limits enacted in recent legislation. The remaining shares will be held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors. The U.S. joint venture will have a majority American board of directors, which is a key requirement of the divest-or-ban law passed by Congress to address national security concerns.
A central element of the agreement relates to data protection and algorithm oversight which is the core issues that had driven federal scrutiny for years. Oracle is expected to serve as the trusted security partner, storing U.S. user data domestically and overseeing compliance with stringent security terms. TikTok’s recommendation algorithm which is widely seen as its most valuable technology will be retrained on U.S. user data to protect the feed from foreign manipulation and meet U.S. regulatory demands.
Users will have to see how this deal will impact their feeds and could be a make or break moment if there is a noticeable difference in content.
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I really wish TikTok would just go away, but maybe this is a step in the right direction. Who really knows.
It's brain rot but damn is it addicting. Not to mention tik tok shop is kind of lucrative I have gotten a bunch of free fishing gear to promote through it
Oh wow, that is cool. I'd love free fishing gear. You have to do videos talking about it though?
TikTok has a lot of content that people don't like. If the content changes, the app will become more popular
It better than other social media
Interesting move by TikTok. U.S.-based oversight of the algorithm could really change how trust and transparency are viewed going forward.
If tiktok can work on their user regulations, I believe the app will grow to become more popular