China confirms TikTok’s US app will use Chinese algorithm

Donald Trump said his administration has secured a deal with China to keep TikTok running in the U.S., though questions remain over the final terms — including whether Beijing will retain control of the app’s algorithm.

“We have a deal on TikTok ... We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it,” Trump said Tuesday, without offering details.

The agreement, negotiated in Madrid between Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, would reportedly shift TikTok’s U.S. assets from ByteDance to American ownership.

A central issue is the fate of TikTok’s algorithm, which has driven its global popularity. At a press conference in Madrid, Wang Jingtao, deputy head of China’s cybersecurity regulator, said the framework includes “licensing the algorithm and other intellectual property rights,” adding that ByteDance would “entrust the operation of TikTok’s U.S. user data and content security.” Some analysts interpret this as a sign the U.S. spinoff will continue to rely on the Chinese algorithm.

During Supreme Court arguments in January, a ByteDance attorney emphasized how difficult it would be to sell TikTok to a U.S. buyer, since Chinese law restricts the transfer of its proprietary algorithm. U.S. officials have long warned the algorithm could be manipulated by Beijing to influence content in subtle ways, though TikTok has said Washington never produced evidence of such interference.

The House Select Committee on China insists any agreement must comply with U.S. law requiring TikTok’s separation from Chinese ownership or face a ban. “It wouldn’t be in compliance if the algorithm is Chinese. There can’t be any shared algorithm with ByteDance,” a committee spokesperson said.

On Tuesday, Trump extended the deadline to enforce a TikTok ban until December 16 — the fourth such delay. The previous deadline would have triggered a law signed in 2024 by then-president Joe Biden mandating TikTok’s U.S. shutdown absent divestment from ByteDance. That legislation was framed around national security concerns tied to the app’s Chinese parent and its potential links to Beijing.