President Donald Trump has signed an executive order approving the $14 billion sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations, bringing an end to the years-long saga over the potential ban of the Chinese app in the United States. The order effectively transfers ownership of TikTok into the hands of American companies and investors, while Chinese parent company ByteDance loses its controlling influence.
Under the agreement, control over TikTok’s algorithm, infrastructure, and content moderation in the U.S. will be taken over by Oracle, Michael Dell, and an investment consortium led by Rupert Murdoch. ByteDance will retain less than 20% ownership, which, according to the White House, “neutralizes Chinese influence over the platform.”
With this arrangement, TikTok will remain fully functional — without app shutdowns or deletion of existing accounts — while all U.S. user data is transferred under domestic oversight and aligned with government requirements. Although details of the transition period have not been disclosed, it is expected to take several months.
This sale follows more than three years of political and regulatory tensions between Washington and Beijing. The Trump administration is sending a clear signal: the U.S. would rather force a change of ownership than block popular digital services altogether. The model applied to TikTok could now become a precedent for other Chinese apps deemed a security risk by U.S. authorities.
The $14 billion TikTok sale is not just a financial transaction — it is a political statement about control over technology, data, and influence in the digital age. While 170 million Americans continue scrolling their feeds, TikTok is entering a new era — one in which its algorithms and content no longer “travel” across the Pacific.
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