TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has finalized a deal to create a majority American-owned joint venture to secure U.S. user data and avoid a potential U.S. ban, the company announced Thursday. The move marks a major milestone after years of political battles over national security concerns.
The new entity, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, will oversee U.S. user data, apps, and content algorithms through enhanced data privacy and cybersecurity measures. Under the agreement, American and global investors will hold 80.1% of the venture, while ByteDance retains a 19.9% stake.
The three managing investors, cloud computing giant Oracle, private equity firm Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX, will each hold 15% of the venture. Other investors include Dell Family Office, Alpha Wave Partners, Vastmere Strategic Investments, Revolution, Merritt Way, Via Nova, Virgo LI, and NJJ Capital.
Former TikTok USDS executives Adam Presser and Will Farrell have been appointed CEO and chief security officer, respectively. TikTok CEO Shou Chew will serve on the venture’s board, overseeing global business strategy.
The venture will retrain, test, and update TikTok’s content recommendation algorithm using U.S. user data, with the algorithm hosted securely on Oracle’s U.S. cloud. ByteDance will maintain control of revenue-generating operations such as e-commerce and advertising, while the venture will receive a portion of revenue for technology and data services.
U.S. and Chinese governments have signed off on the deal. President Donald Trump praised the agreement, thanking Chinese President Xi Jinping for approving it and calling the venture “owned by a group of Great American Patriots and Investors.”
The deal resolves longstanding concerns over data security and regulatory compliance, ensuring that TikTok can continue operating in the U.S., where the app is used by over 200 million Americans, including Trump himself, who has credited the platform with supporting his reelection campaign
