TikTok Agreement Gives ByteDance One Seat on US Board

The move comes as former President Donald Trump seeks to ensure TikTok’s survival in the United States, where it has more than 170 million users. Reuters reported that Trump is attempting to satisfy a 2024 law that ordered TikTok shut down unless its U.S. assets were divested. The administration has already pushed back enforcement until mid-December while negotiating terms with ByteDance and potential American investors.

This week’s developments mark a rare step forward in long-running talks between the world’s two largest economies, which have been at odds over trade, technology, and security concerns. Trump told reporters Friday that he had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping by phone and that both sides had made progress, though Beijing has not confirmed how close the parties are to a final deal. According to Reuters, Trump is prepared to extend enforcement delays by another 120 days, which would move the deadline for a binding agreement into April.

Read more: White House Pushes Back TikTok Deadline, Seeks Deal With China

As part of the plan, all U.S. user data would be hosted on cloud infrastructure operated by Oracle, a measure designed to ease longstanding fears about Chinese access to Americans’ personal information. The algorithm that powers TikTok’s recommendations would also be “retrained” under U.S. oversight and kept beyond ByteDance’s reach, a White House official said. Reuters previously noted that licensing of the algorithm had been one of the most sensitive issues in the negotiations.

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are expected to scrutinize the plan closely. Representative Frank Pallone, a Democrat, voiced skepticism, saying, “The devil will be in the details. We cannot allow China continued access to massive amounts of Americans’ personal data, and we cannot allow Trump to hand TikTok over to his tech bro buddies and turn it into a MAGA mouthpiece. Period.”

Despite the tentative agreement, questions remain over whether the current structure meets the divestiture requirements set by Congress. According to Reuters, ByteDance’s stake in the proposed U.S. joint venture would fall below 20 percent, with majority ownership going to American investors. The White House has also said the board will be staffed with experts in cybersecurity and national security.