TikTok USDS Joint Venture Established To Operate In US, Appoints Adam Presser As CEO & Shou Zi Chew As Director
TikTok announced the formation of a U.S. joint venture, TikTok USDS (United States Data Security), with Adam Presser as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew as a Director. The new entity will operate independently under safeguards for national security, including data protection, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users.
ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, will retain 19.9% of the venture. Silver Lake, Oracle, and MGX are the managing investors, alongside other backers such as Michael Dell’s investment firm, Alpha Wave Partners, and General Atlantic affiliate Via Nova. The venture will be governed by a seven-member Board, with a majority of American Directors. TikTok’s recommendation algorithm will be hosted and updated in Oracle’s U.S. data centres. The move follows a national security law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a ban. The U.S. and Chinese governments have approved the deal, which is expected to close this week.
Presser previously served as TikTok’s Head of Operations and Trust & Safety since March 2024. Before this role, he was VP, TikTok Chief of Staff (reporting to the CEO) from 2022 to 2023. He has extensive experience in the media industry, including serving as EVP at WarnerMedia International, overseeing operations in China, Australia, and New Zealand, and holding senior roles at Warner Bros. Entertainment. He began his career as Senior Director at Ticketmaster Entertainment in Asia. Presser holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Chew was responsible for leading Corporate Governance and driving global growth as CEO of TikTok. He has been with TikTok since its inception, initially leading a team of ByteDance’s early investors. Before TikTok, he served as Executive Director, President-International, and SVP at Xiaomi Corp., and was a Partner at DST Global. He holds an undergraduate degree from University College London and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
