Soon after the photo and video sharing platform officially transitioned to American-led ownership, to avoid a permanent nationwide ban., TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew sent an internal memo to company employees, sharing the “good news”. The deal establishes, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, a new entity that will keep the platform up and running for its 200 million American users.The ownership of TikTok US is now split among a group of American and global investors with TikTok-parent company ByteDance keeping a minority stake.Oracle keeps 15% and will act as “technological steward” by hosting all US data and oversee the retraining of the recommendation engine. Silver Lake and MGX – An Emirati-based AI and technology investor keep 15% each. ByteDance with a 19.9% stake, retains a non-controlling stake, and the rest 35.1% belong to Strategic Investors, a group including Michael Dell’s family office and Vastmere Strategic Investments (an affiliate of Susquehanna International Group).
TikTok top boss thanks employees for ‘resilience’
Chew sent a message, thanking them for their “resilience” while announcing that “more than 200 million Americans now come to TikTok to be entertained, learn, and grow their business with a broader global community.” Read the full memo:I am pleased to update you with some great news.Today, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC has been established in compliance with the Executive Order signed by President Trump on September 25, 2025, enabling our US users to continue to discover, create, and thrive as part of TikTok’s vibrant global community and experience.As we take this significant step forward, I am proud to share that today more than 200 million Americans now come to TikTok to be entertained, learn, and grow their business with a broader global community. We are grateful for the incredible support of our user base, and the unwavering dedication and resilience of our employees that has allowed us to continue delivering at a high level.TikTok’s growth in the US nicely sets up the Joint Venture for strong future success. The majority American owned Joint Venture will operate under defined safeguards that protect national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for US users. It will be led by Adam Presser who, today, has been chosen by the Joint Venture’s Board of Directors for his impressive track record with the company leading large-scale teams in the areas of Trust & Safety and Operations. Please find more details on today’s news here.Interoperability will be critical in enabling users and creators to have the same global experience that they know and love, and for the 7.5 million US businesses to continue to thrive on TikTok by reaching customers around the world. To ensure this continuity for our users, new subsidiaries including “TT Commerce & Global Services LLC,” have been created to manage global product interoperability as well as commercial activities, including e-commerce, advertising, and marketing.To date, we have provided compliance training for all TikTok employees. Going forward when working with the newly created USDS JV, I expect everyone to continue to follow data privacy, content assurance, code compliance, and trust and safety protocols.I thank you all for the tireless work you do every single day in fulfilling our mission to inspire creativity and bring joy.Shou
