After briefly going offline in the US to comply with the divest-or-ban law aimed at ByteDance, which took effect on January 19th, TikTok quickly returned. The app was back in the App Store and Google Play as negotiations between the US and China progressed, with Donald Trump signing extensions that directed officials not to enforce the law’s penalties.
By mid-December, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew informed employees that agreements to establish TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC—incorporating Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX as part owners—had been finalized. The deal is set to close on January 22nd, 2026. Chew noted that this new joint venture will manage data protection for US users, ensure the security of a newly-retrained algorithm, handle content moderation, and oversee the operation of the US app and platform.
Read on for all the latest updates on the TikTok ban law in the US.
