"The deal would create a new U.S.-only version of the app, bringing it into compliance with a law signed by former President Joe Biden on April 23, 2024, and upheld by the Supreme Court on Jan. 17, 2025. Specifics of the deal remain to be hammered out, and left unresolved is the fate of the video sharing app's core algorithm - and what that means for TikTok's millions of U.S. users."
"The Chinese government has indicated it will not permit ByteDance to sell the algorithm, because it is classified as a controlled technology export, per Chinese law. Meanwhile, U.S. tech industry executives and some lawmakers say compliance with the law requires the algorithm to be under American control. The deal as proposed includes licensing the algorithm so that it remains Chinese intellectual property while the U.S. version of the app continues to use the technology."
"The algorithm's value lies in its uncanny capacity to anticipate users' content preferences. Many users claim it knows them better than they know themselves - a sentiment that has evolved into a curious mix of spiritual belief and conspiracy theorizing, as my colleagues and I have documented. Other scholars have similarly noted that users feel more intimately seen and known by TikTok's algorithm than those powering other popular platforms."
A preliminary agreement announced Sept. 19, 2025 would transfer a majority stake in TikTok from ByteDance to U.S. investors, creating a U.S.-only version of the app to comply with a law signed April 23, 2024 and upheld by the Supreme Court Jan. 17, 2025. The fate of TikTok's core recommendation algorithm remains unresolved. China classifies the algorithm as a controlled technology export and has indicated it will not permit its sale, while U.S. stakeholders argue the algorithm must be under American control. The proposed deal would license the algorithm, leaving it as Chinese intellectual property, even as that algorithm drives intense user engagement and perceptions of being personally known.
Read at Fortune
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