TikTok Shifts Control of U.S. Operations to American Investors

TikTok has agreed to restructure its U.S. business under a new joint venture that will place significant control of the platform’s American operations in the hands of a group of U.S.-based investors, according to an internal memo from ByteDance CEO Shou Chew. The agreement marks a major turning point in a multi-year effort by U.S. regulators to separate TikTok’s domestic operations from its Chinese parent company over national security concerns.

Under the proposed arrangement, the new entity – named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC – will oversee TikTok’s U.S. operations, including data protection, content moderation, algorithm security, and software assurance. The investor group includes Oracle, private equity firm Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based AI investment firm MGX. Together, those investors will hold a combined 45% ownership stake in the U.S. business, while ByteDance will retain just under 20%, according to the memo reviewed by TechCrunch.

The remaining ownership stake is expected to be held by other existing and future investors, though full details were not disclosed. The transaction is scheduled to close on January 22, 2026, pending regulatory approvals. The memo states that Oracle will serve as the venture’s primary security partner, responsible for overseeing compliance with U.S. national security requirements

The structure of the deal closely mirrors the framework outlined in a U.S. executive order signed in September, which authorized the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations to an American-controlled entity. Reports from CNBC and Axios had previously identified Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX as leading participants in negotiations, but this memo provides the clearest picture yet of how ownership and governance would be divided.