TikTok Satisfies Supreme Court Requirements with Majority American Ownership Deal

TikTok has successfully completed a landmark ownership transaction that establishes a new majority American-owned entity, allowing the platform to continue US operations while satisfying Supreme Court-validated requirements for national security protection. The announcement Thursday marks the resolution of a legal battle that reached the highest court in the land.
The finalized ownership structure reduces ByteDance to a 19.9% minority stake, while American investors collectively control 80.1% of the new US-based company. The American ownership group features three primary stakeholders with equal shares: Oracle, with 15%; Silver Lake, with 15%; and MGX, with 15%. The investment firm associated with Michael Dell, founder of Dell Technologies, also contributes to the American capital commitment.
This settlement stems from legislation passed overwhelmingly by Congress in 2024 that effectively banned TikTok unless it separated from Chinese ownership within a specified timeframe. The law reflected widespread bipartisan concern about national security vulnerabilities, including potential foreign government access to sensitive data and manipulation of content algorithms. The Supreme Court affirmed the legislation’s constitutionality in January 2025, validating congressional authority to impose the requirement.
Adam Presser will serve as CEO of the American entity, drawing on his extensive experience managing global operations and trust and safety functions for TikTok. Strategic direction will be provided by a seven-member board of directors, purposefully structured with an American majority and composed of experts in cybersecurity and national security disciplines. Shou Chew, the current global CEO of TikTok, will participate as a board member.
The new US entity commits to implementing comprehensive safeguards that directly address the concerns underlying the original ban legislation, including advanced data protection protocols, secured algorithm architecture, enhanced content moderation systems, and software integrity assurances. The platform’s recommendation algorithm will be completely retrained using only data from American users, with continuous testing and refinement to ensure independence from foreign influence. President Trump intervened with executive orders to delay the ban’s enforcement while negotiations proceeded, and both US and Chinese government officials have now approved the final arrangement, which allows the platform to serve its vast American audience.