How TikTok Returned: The $60 Billion Deal That Changed Everything (Part 2)
Estimated read time: 5 minutes
The Midnight Negotiation: Biden’s Secret Beijing Call
On Jan 19, 2025, President Biden made an unannounced 3 AM call to Beijing. The demand? “Cut China’s access to U.S. TikTok data, or the ban stays forever.”
China initially refused. But TikTok’s U.S. shutdown was costing ByteDance $15 million daily. By April, both sides agreed to a deal so controversial, it’s still debated today.
The $60 Billion “Poison Pill” Compromise
TikTok’s return came with brutal conditions:
- 💰 $60 Billion Investment: ByteDance had to fund U.S. data centers monitored by a “Committee of Guardians” (ex-CIA, NSA, and Meta engineers).
- 🔒 Algorithm Jail: TikTok’s code was locked in a Salt Lake City server farm. Even ByteDance engineers needed U.S. approval to touch it.
- 🇺🇸 U.S. Puppet Company: TikTok technically became “American,” but whispers say ByteDance still pulls strings via shell companies in Luxembourg.
Project Texas 2.0: The AI Oversight Lie
TikTok touted “Project Texas 2.0”—a “100% U.S.-controlled” algorithm. Reality? Leaked emails reveal:
- 🤖 AI moderation tools still used Chinese-trained models (rebranded as “Stanford AI”).
- 🚨 U.S. moderators could only block content, not shape trends.
- 📈 The FYP algorithm stayed intact. Why? “User engagement would drop 70% otherwise,” confessed a TikTok insider.
The Plot Twist: Oracle’s Hidden Role
Here’s where it gets wild. Oracle, TikTok’s “independent U.S. auditor,” secretly owned 12% of TikTok’s U.S. operations through a Delaware shell company. CEO Safra Catz called it a “patriotic investment.” Critics called it a conflict of interest.
This explains why Apple and Google suddenly supported TikTok’s return—they feared being next in the ban crosshairs.
A Pyrrhic Victory? The Fallout
TikTok returned on Jan 20, 2025, with fireworks and influencer apologies. But the cracks showed fast:
- 📉 U.S. user growth flatlined—Gen Z didn’t trust the “censored” app.
- 🔍 China retaliated by leaking NSA documents about U.S. social media spying.
- ⚖️ A federal judge later ruled the ban “unconstitutional”, making the $60B deal seem unnecessary.
Was It Worth It?
The U.S. got “control” of TikTok but lost global tech credibility. China kept its algorithm magic. And users? They just got ads. Who really won?
👉 Read Part 3: The 2026 TikTok Rebellion—How Users DESTROYED the Algorithm