TikTok has finalized an agreement to sell a significant portion of its U.S. operations to American investors, a move that will allow the popular video-sharing app to continue operating in the United States.
The deal will create a new company, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, which will oversee TikTok’s U.S. business. Ownership of the new entity will be shared among U.S. investors, existing ByteDance investors, and ByteDance itself. American investors will hold a majority stake, while ByteDance will retain less than 20% ownership, meeting U.S. legal requirements.
According to a memo sent to employees by TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, the transaction is expected to close by January 22, 2026, pending final regulatory approvals.
Under the agreement, the U.S. joint venture will control user data protection, content moderation, and the platform’s recommendation algorithm for American users. TikTok said the algorithm will be retrained using U.S. user data to reduce the risk of outside influence.
Sensitive U.S. user data will be stored on secure servers in the United States operated by Oracle, which will also serve as the company’s security partner responsible for auditing compliance with national security standards.
TikTok’s global teams will continue to manage international operations, including advertising, e-commerce, and marketing. The company said the changes will not affect the experience of its more than 170 million U.S. users.
The agreement follows months of negotiations between the U.S. government, TikTok, and Chinese officials after the platform briefly went offline earlier this year due to missed divestment deadlines. The new deal is designed to comply with an executive order signed in September 2025 and is expected to be completed within 120 days of final approval.