TikTok announced Thursday the successful finalization of an ownership restructuring that places American investors in control of critical technology infrastructure, addressing concerns about foreign control over platform systems. The deal emphasizes infrastructure sovereignty alongside ownership changes.
The completed transaction reduces ByteDance’s ownership to a 19.9% minority stake, while American investors collectively control 80.1% of the new US-based company. Oracle’s 15% stake is particularly significant given its cloud infrastructure and database technology capabilities that can support independent American operations. Silver Lake and MGX each hold 15%, with Michael Dell’s investment firm contributing additional capital and technology sector expertise.
This settlement stems from congressional legislation passed in 2024 that reflected concern not just about corporate ownership but about control over the actual infrastructure—servers, databases, networking equipment, and software systems—that stores American user data and runs the platform. Infrastructure control determines who can physically access data and systems regardless of corporate ownership structures. The deal addresses these concerns by ensuring American control over infrastructure elements.
The restructured American TikTok will be led by Adam Presser as CEO, with strategic oversight from a seven-member board of directors with an American majority and technical expertise to evaluate infrastructure decisions. Current TikTok CEO Shou Chew will participate as a board member while infrastructure control shifts to American hands.
The new US entity commits to American control over technology infrastructure, leveraging Oracle’s capabilities to ensure data storage, processing, and platform operations occur on American-controlled systems. This infrastructure sovereignty complements ownership changes, providing technical mechanisms to prevent unauthorized foreign access. Additional safeguards include secured algorithms, enhanced moderation, and software integrity measures. The recommendation algorithm undergoes retraining using data hosted on American infrastructure. Both governments have approved the arrangement emphasizing infrastructure control.