A new agreement between the United States and China over TikTok’s American operations has given ByteDance just one board seat out of seven, with the remaining six controlled by American appointees. This deal represents a significant step toward resolving months of tense negotiations that risked banning TikTok in the US.
Background of the TikTok Dispute
The US Congress passed a law in 2024 requiring TikTok’s American assets to be sold by January 2025 or face a ban. Lawmakers raised concerns over data security and potential Chinese influence on US citizens through the platform’s algorithm.
Former President Donald Trump delayed enforcement of the law until mid-December 2025 while talks continued. His administration aimed to separate TikTok’s American operations from ByteDance, attract US investors, and meet the conditions of a complete divestiture as required by the law.
Structure of the New TikTok Board
According to US officials, ByteDance will nominate only one of seven board members in the new entity. The six remaining seats will be filled by Americans, many with cybersecurity and national security expertise. ByteDance’s ownership will be reduced to less than 20 percent in a joint venture that manages TikTok’s US assets. American investors, including General Atlantic, KKR, and Susquehanna International Group, are expected to hold majority stakes.
Data Security Under the Agreement
All US TikTok data will be stored on American cloud servers managed by Oracle. Additionally, TikTok’s content recommendation algorithm will be retrained under US supervision and operated independently of ByteDance. This restructuring aims to ensure that no user data leaves the United States and that foreign influence on algorithmic recommendations is eliminated.
Officials emphasized that American users will still be able to interact with global content, but all processing of US data will remain within American infrastructure.
Political and Lawmaker Reactions
Although the agreement signals progress, several lawmakers remain cautious. Critics have warned that without complete transparency, the deal may not meet the full divestiture requirement of the 2024 law. Representative Frank Pallone stressed that the US cannot allow China access to American data or risk turning TikTok into a politically biased platform.
Meanwhile, Trump highlighted TikTok’s influence in his 2024 re-election campaign, crediting the platform’s outreach for connecting with voters. The White House recently launched an official TikTok account, underscoring the app’s growing role in political communication.
Future of the Deal
The Biden administration is expected to extend the pause on enforcement of the 2024 law for another 120 days, moving the next deadline for compliance to April 2026. This extension will allow time for the agreement to be finalized and tested for compliance.
Despite these developments, uncertainty remains over whether the current arrangement qualifies as a full divestiture. Lawmakers will likely demand further clarification in the coming weeks, as the deal could shape the future of US-China technology relations.
