TikTok US operations to hold copy of algorithm, secured by Oracle: White House

Washington: Oracle will take on the role of securing TikTok’s content recommendation system for US users under a deal tied to the sale of the Chinese-owned app’s American operations, the White House said Monday.

A senior administration official told reporters that a copy of TikTok’s closely guarded algorithm will be moved into the US joint venture structure. “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 arrangement addresses long-standing national security concerns in Washington over Beijing-based ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, and its potential ability to influence what appears on the platform for American audiences.

Determining how to handle the algorithm has been one of the most scrutinised elements in the negotiations over TikTok’s US future. “They believe the plan will satisfy national security concerns over a Chinese company potentially manipulating what is being shown to platform users,” the official said.

While specific details of the investor structure have not been disclosed, the official confirmed that Silver Lake, a private equity firm, is among the backers of the US entity.

The Trump administration is expected to formalise the deal this week. The White House official said President Donald Trump will sign an executive order declaring that the terms meet U.S. security requirements.

The agreement follows Trump’s conversation on Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping, their second call since Trump returned to office, during which he praised progress on a range of issues including TikTok.

Lawmakers in Washington have pushed to separate TikTok’s American operations from ByteDance for years. President Joe Biden signed bipartisan legislation before leaving office requiring ByteDance to divest U.S. assets or face a ban on the app. Trump, a Republican, extended the deadline several times in pursuit of an agreement that would allow TikTok to remain available to millions of American users.

(With inputs from agencies)