ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner, announced that it has signed an agreement with three major investors to establish a joint venture that will operate the popular app in the United States. The venture will be run by American and international investors to avoid a US ban, according to a Reuters report.
“We have signed agreements with investors regarding a new TikTok U.S. joint venture, enabling over 170 million Americans to continue discovering a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community,” TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew wrote in a memo to employees.
The deal marks a significant step toward securing the app’s continued operations in the US, where it has more than 170 million active users. Threats to ByteDance’s US operations began during Donald Trump’s first term, centered on claims that the app posed a national security risk due to alleged data transfers to the Chinese government. In April 2024, Congress passed a law requiring TikTok’s sale or face a ban.
The original deadline was set for Jan. 19, 2025, the day before Trump’s inauguration for a second term. After returning to the White House, however, he extended the deadline several times, with the current cutoff set for Jan. 20, 2026. Trump has more than 15 million followers on TikTok and has claimed the platform helped him win the election.
According to Reuters, the new deal’s details match those first disclosed in September. Under the plan, the main investors will be Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based MGX. They will hold a combined 45% stake in the venture, with additional investors holding 35.1% and ByteDance retaining 19.9%. Chew added that the venture “operate as an independent entity with authority over U.S. data protection, algorithm security, content moderation and software assurance.”
Oracle declined to comment on the report, while the White House referred questions to TikTok.