The White House announced Monday that Oracle will provide security for a US version of TikTok’s algorithm, as part of a deal to move the app’s American operations into a new joint venture based in the United States.
A senior White House official told reporters that the joint venture will have a “majority-American board of directors.”
The plan also requires that a copy of TikTok’s content recommendation algorithm be shifted into the US entity.
“It’s going to be fully inspected and retrained by the security provider on US user data, and then it’s going to be operated by that US entity,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The official added that the algorithm would be “continuously monitored” to ensure it is “not being unduly influenced.”
Washington has pushed for TikTok’s US operations to be separated from its Chinese parent company ByteDance, over national security concerns. Lawmakers and officials, including Donald Trump during his first presidency, have warned that China could use the platform to collect data on Americans or influence content.
Under President Joe Biden, Congress passed legislation requiring ByteDance to sell its US business or face a nationwide ban.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News over the weekend that “there will be seven seats on the board that controls the app in the United States, and six of those seats will be Americans.”
Trump separately suggested that Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan could be among the investors who will help take control of TikTok in the United States.
The updates followed Trump’s phone call Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping, their second conversation since Trump returned to office. After the discussion, Trump said progress had been made on several issues, including TikTok.
According to the White House official, Trump is expected to sign an executive order this week declaring that the deal meets US national security requirements.