TikTok announced Thursday the successful conclusion of a transformative ownership deal that creates a majority American-owned entity, effectively sidestepping a federal ban while implementing enhanced content moderation specifically designed for US users. The agreement represents the culmination of five years of regulatory pressure and negotiations.
ByteDance, which developed and operates TikTok globally, will retain only 19.9% ownership of the American entity under the finalized structure. US-based investors collectively control 80.1%, with ownership distributed among several prominent firms. Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX each hold 15% stakes, while the investment firm of billionaire Michael Dell also participates. This ownership structure shifts control decisively to American hands.
The deal responds to bipartisan legislation passed in 2024 that required TikTok to find an American buyer or face complete prohibition from US digital infrastructure. The law stemmed from national security concerns, including fears that the Chinese government could access American user data or manipulate content through algorithmic control. The Supreme Court upheld the ban in January 2025, after which President Trump issued executive orders delaying enforcement to allow negotiations to proceed.
The new American TikTok will be headed by Adam Presser as chief executive officer, bringing valuable institutional knowledge from his previous leadership positions within the company, including roles as general manager and global head of operations and trust and safety. Strategic oversight will be provided by a seven-member board of directors, structured with an American majority and filled with professionals who have backgrounds in cybersecurity and national security. Current TikTok CEO Shou Chew will serve as a board member.
The restructured company has committed to implementing comprehensive safeguards for American users, including advanced data protection measures, secured algorithms, enhanced content moderation capabilities specifically tailored for the US market, and software integrity protocols. The platform’s content recommendation algorithm will undergo complete retraining based exclusively on data from American users, with ongoing testing and updates to ensure it operates independently from foreign systems. Both US and Chinese government officials have approved the deal, with President Trump publicly expressing gratitude to Chinese President Xi Jinping for facilitating the arrangement, which provides certainty for millions of American users and content creators who depend on the platform.
TikTok Restructuring Includes Content Moderation Enhancements for US Users
