TikTok CEO Swears Company Is ‘Not An Agent Of China’

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew defended ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of the social media giant, against accusations that it is under the influence of the Chinese government. He made these claims before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday, and he argued that ByteDance is “not an agent of China or any other country.” American lawmakers have long been worried that the Chinese Communist Party has access to user data through TikTok, which is the most popular social media platform among American young people. If ByteDance were found to work for China’s interests, it could lead to U.S. lawmakers forcing its sale or prohibition in the United States.

In a recent proposal called Project Texas, TikTok committed to spending $1.5 billion to protect user data and prevent Chinese officials from accessing user data. TikTok has also contracted with Oracle, an American cloud services provider, to store domestic user data. However, the proposal was reportedly rejected by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.

TikTok CEO Chew underscored the company’s runaway popularity among young people in the U.S., and the negative impact that a ban on TikTok may have on American small businesses and the economy. He acknowledged that TikTok has “made mistakes” with regards to privacy, but the company is “making changes to address” the issue. In terms of user safety, Chew announced that all TikTok users under 18 would have a one-hour daily screen time limit and better parental controls. TikTok is also open to further discussions about legislation that would enforce better industry standards for age verification.

TikTok has received backlash from American officials for data security and surveillance concerns. President Joe Biden and several state-level officials have banned TikTok from government devices, while some critics also believe the platform’s vertical video format has an adverse psychological impact on young users.

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