By Keerthi Ramesh
TikTok’s freshly taken up U.S. ownership is facing unexpected challenges just days after taking control of the popular social media platform, leaving users and industry observers worried about the app’s future.
Over the past weekend, thousands of American TikTok users reported problems with the app, including feeds that wouldn’t load and “For You” pages that failed to refresh. Consumer outage tracker Downdetector recorded more than half a million user reports within a 24-hour span, peaking Sunday morning. Many users said they could not upload videos or see new content.
The outages come only days after TikTok announced the completion of a major restructuring that gave control of its U.S. operations to a new joint venture majority of which are owned by American investors. The move was required under U.S. law after long-running national security concerns over foreign ownership threatened a ban on the app.
READ: US and China reach ‘final deal’ on TikTok sale (October 27, 2025)
In a statement posted on social media platform X, the newly formed TikTok USDS Joint Venture said service the “disruptions” of the app was because of a power failure at a U.S. data center. “We’re working with our data center partner to stabilize our service,” the joint venture said. “We’re sorry for this disruption and hope to resolve it soon.”
The venture’s managing investors each hold a 15 percent stake. They include Oracle, the Silicon Valley cloud computing company co-founded by billionaire Larry Ellison; private equity firm Silver Lake; and Abu Dhabi-based investment group MGX. ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based former parent company, retains a minority stake of just under 20 percent under the terms of the U.S. ownership deal.
The change in ownership was made to ensure TikTok could continue operating in the United States amid rising political and regulatory pressure. A 2024 law sought to force ByteDance to divest TikTok’s American operations or face removal from U.S. app stores, a move upheld by the Supreme Court last year. But the reason for the joint venture was said “to protect the national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users,” according to their press release.
READ: TikTok avoids US ban as it finalizes joint venture deal under Trump (January 23, 2026)
Despite the announcement of a U.S.-controlled body, many users have reported that the platform already feels different. Several social media posts from users suggested that politically themed content, such as videos about recent immigration enforcement actions, the Israeli-Palestine conflict, and other controversially themed clips appeared to be missing from the algorithm and that they are finding it difficult to upload videos regarding all political issues, although TikTok has not confirmed any deliberate content restrictions.
It seems that the principle reason for the venture is more about control rather than a national security concern, based on the user’s post on social media stating “the new TikTok algorithm has ZERO, and I mean absolutely ZERO news or politics content.”
For many creators, TikTok remains a critical platform for reaching audiences and earning income. But the early technical issues have sparked fresh debate over whether the new ownership structure will change the app’s performance or influence what users see. Analysts say broader changes to data handling and the recommendation algorithm, now being localized for U.S. users, could also affect how content is served on the platform.
As the joint venture works to resolve the outage and stabilize service, both users and industry watchers will be watching closely to see if this rocky start foreshadows longer-term challenges for TikTok’s new chapter.