The saga surrounding TikTok, the social media behemoth, has been mired in uncertainty for years, as potential deals to ensure its security for American users have repeatedly fallen through. The core issue revolves around concerns about data privacy and national security due to TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, being based in China, raising fears of its ties with the Chinese government and the Communist Party.
In a bid to address these concerns, Congress, during the final days of the Biden administration, passed legislation that would ban TikTok in the U.S. unless it was sold to a non-Chinese entity. This move aimed to safeguard user data and mitigate any undue influence from foreign powers.
The Trump administration, shortly after assuming office, took the matter to the Supreme Court with an amicus brief, seeking a definitive resolution. However, the court chose not to interfere with the legislative ban, a decision that President Trump had postponed several times while hoping to broker a deal that would satisfy all parties involved.
Efforts to bring TikTok under American control gained momentum in September 2025, when an executive order was issued, initiating a process to ensure that the segment of TikTok accessible to U.S. users would be operated and headquartered within the United States.
For further insights: Explore how Trump’s actions might finally resolve the TikTok controversy in the U.S., and learn about the new executive order extending TikTok’s reprieve, a move that reportedly displeased China due to reciprocal tariffs.
Trump Extends Reprieve of TikTok Ban in New EO; China Was ‘Not Very Happy’ About Reciprocal Tariffs
Now, the deal for TikTok to operate in U.S. has officially closed, ending years of uncertainty for the Chinese-owned ByteDance and its social media platform, with a U.S.-based group taking charge:
The new TikTok U.S. joint venture, featuring a mostly American investor group led by Oracle and Silver Lake, was revealed last month when TikTok CEO Shou Chew told employees in an internal memo that the company had signed agreements to create the new entity.
He said in the memo that the new entity would address U.S. lawmakers’ concerns about the Chinese government’s ability to use its influence over ByteDance to harness the platform for propaganda or to access the data of the platform’s 170 million American users.
…ByteDance will have a nearly 20% stake in the new U.S. entity, while 15% stakes in the venture will go to Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX. The new entity is expected to be governed by a board with a majority of its directors from the U.S.
According to a White House official speaking to Fox Business:
The U.S. and China on Thursday signed off on a TikTok U.S. spin-off deal that will allow the short-form video app to continue to operate in the U.S. by addressing concerns about its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
President Trump celebrated the deal in a post on his Truth Social account late on Thursday evening, partly giving props to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
He wrote:
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
Leave it to the Democrats, though, to try to “get Trump” by demanding an investigation. Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey called for one on Friday morning, when he tried to insinuate simply because President Donald Trump accomplished it, the TikTok deal is fishy:
“After over a year of Donald Trump illegally extending the TikTok deadline, this TikTok deal raises many more questions than answers,” Markey said in a statement. “Despite my repeated requests for information, the White House has provided virtually no details about this agreement, including whether TikTok’s algorithm is truly free of Chinese influence.”
“This lack of transparency reeks,” he continued. “Congress has a responsibility to investigate this deal, demand transparency, and ensure that any arrangement truly protects national security while keeping TikTok online.”
There’s just one problem for the desparate Dems. Notice in the statement from TikTok that the “new entity” will not be controlled by China. There’s also this nugget. Back in September 2025, the facet of the deal to make certain it conforms to the new law – by protecting national security – was already squared away, as the Fox Business report linked above noted.
Vice President JD Vance stated that the ownership group being located in the United States means that “the American entity and American investors will actually control the algorithm”:
The vice president also noted that the U.S. entity having control over the algorithm was important for fulfilling the national security requirements under the law.
…
[Vance said] “the most important thing is that it does protect Americans’ data security and ensures TikTok is still accessible.”
Vance added that the deal ensures “that the American entity and American investors will actually control the algorithm” and that will prevent it from being used to disseminate foreign governments’ propaganda.
This is good news, and what everyone has been hoping for all along, with iron-clad safeguards in place for Americans’ safety. We’ll keep you posted on further developments as warranted.
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