TikTok fights for survival in US

TIKTOK CEO Shou Zi Chew battled for the survival of the hugely popular video-sharing app in the US yesterday, as he faced skeptical Washington lawmakers over the company’s alleged ties to the Chinese government.

The 40-year-old Singaporean addressed the powerful House energy and commerce committee, facing hours of serious grilling by both Republicans and Democrats who fear that Beijing could subvert the site for spying or to push propaganda.

TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, is under pressure across Western countries, with government officials in Washington, the UK and Canada forced to delete the app from their devices. The app’s gravest threat is from the US, where the administration of President Joe Biden has set an ultimatum that the company either dump its Chinese ownership or face an outright ban.

“ByteDance is not owned or controlled by the Chinese government and is a private company,” Chew said.

A ban would cut off 150 million monthly users in the US from an application that has become a cultural powerhouse. Chew’s testimony would promote the company’s plan where the handling of US data will be ringfenced under a US-run division.