Trump just announced that the U.S. and China struck a deal to keep TikTok alive in America and under U.S.-controlled ownership. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is calling it a ‘framework deal.’ Which means more details to come. The deal is expected to close in the next 30-45 days and there are more questions than answers at this point so let’s dive in..
What seems to be the deal
Here’s what’s known so far (or at least what’s being reported by credible sources):
Element | What reports say |
US restructuring | ByteDance (China) is going to spin off TikTok’s U.S. operations into a new company, majority-owned by U.S. investors. |
Ownership split | 80.1% owned by Oracle, Silver Lake, Andreessen Horowitz, etc. ByteDance would retain under ~20% — reports give ~19.9%. |
Board / governance | The board of the new U.S. entity is supposed to be “U.S. dominated,” and there will be a seat for someone appointed by the U.S. government. |
Data localization | U.S. user data will be stored with Oracle in Texas. Oracle is a big part of the infrastructure side in this plan. |
New / separate app / version | The reports indicate U.S. users will be asked to migrate to a version of the app built specifically for the U.S., one that uses a separate algorithm and data system. |
Algorithm / IP licensing | ByteDance is apparently licensing the recommendation algorithm / “technology” to the U.S. entity; the tech still originates with ByteDance. |
What’s still unclear / what people are debating
These are the grey areas or points people are raising concerns about:
How independent is the algorithm?
If the U.S. entity is licensing the algorithm, how tightly will ByteDance still influence or have access? Will updates, tweaks, training data, or modifications be able to come from China? Will the U.S. version diverge materially? There’s concern that licensing still allows control or backdoors.Legal and security compliance
The U.S. law passed in 2024 requires divestiture of ByteDance ownership, citing data security & national security. Critics are saying that even with ≤20% ownership, if the algorithm is under ByteDance control (or if there’s still shared infrastructure), it might violate the “spirit” (or maybe the letter) of the law.Chinese export / IP law issues
Since China restricts export of certain algorithms / tech/IP, it might be difficult (or require special approval) for ByteDance to license or transfer algorithmic control or tech. Some discussions highlight that Beijing is okay with licensing IP in this framework.Enforcement / oversight
Even if the deal is approved, how will standards be enforced (e.g. to ensure user data is handled only under U.S. control, that algorithmic decisions aren’t manipulated abroad)? Will U.S. regulators get transparency? Win audits? These details aren’t fully spelled out yet.User experience / migration
Users will need to migrate to the U.S.-app / version; that’s going to create friction. Also, what that means for features, content moderation differences, algorithm differences, etc., is not fully known.