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US Senator Questions TikTok Restructuring Deal

By  |  May 31, 2026
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US Democratic Senator Ed Markey has formally requested information from TikTok’s newly established U.S. joint venture and cloud computing company Oracle regarding how they are safeguarding the personal data of American users and preventing foreign influence over the content shown on the popular video-sharing platform.

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    The inquiry comes four months after TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, completed a restructuring deal that transferred control of the app’s U.S. user data and operations to a new entity, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, in an effort to avoid a U.S. government ban on the platform, which is used by more than 200 million Americans, according to Reuters.

    In letters sent to TikTok USDS and Oracle, Markey raised concerns about whether the arrangement adequately addresses national security risks. “The divestment deal has left the Congress and the American people rightfully wondering whether President Trump’s TikTok deal is a national security risk,” Markey said in the letters.

    According to Reuters, Oracle is one of the three managing investors in the TikTok USDS joint venture. Earlier this year, TikTok said the venture would be responsible for retraining, testing and updating the platform’s content recommendation algorithm using U.S. user data. The company also stated that the algorithm would be secured within Oracle’s cloud infrastructure in the United States.

    Markey asked both Oracle and TikTok USDS to provide details on “how they are protecting against national security risks, including potential Chinese-driven algorithmic manipulation.” He also requested information from Oracle about the contractual terms governing its review of ByteDance’s underlying source code.

    Related: TikTok Challenges EU “Gatekeeper” Label in Landmark Court Fight

    Lawmakers from both parties have voiced frustration over the limited public information available about the transaction, according to Reuters, although Congress has not yet held hearings on the matter. The deal emerged after President Donald Trump chose not to enforce a law enacted in April 2024 that required ByteDance to divest TikTok’s U.S. assets by January 2025 or face a ban. The measure had previously been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

    ByteDance has said that TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will protect American user data, applications and algorithms through cybersecurity and privacy safeguards. However, the company has released few details about how the divestiture arrangement operates in practice, per Reuters.

    Under the agreement, American and international investors hold an 80.1% stake in the venture, while ByteDance retains a 19.9% ownership interest.

    Reuters reported in September, citing sources, that ByteDance would continue to own TikTok’s U.S. business operations while relinquishing control over the app’s user data, content moderation systems and recommendation algorithm to the joint venture.

    Source: Reuters