That 2020 govt order got here to nothing in the long run—it was blocked within the courts, put apart after the presidency modified palms, and ultimately withdrawn by the Biden administration. But the concept—that the US authorities ought to ban TikTok in a roundabout way—by no means went away. It could repeatedly be instructed in several varieties and shapes. And ultimately, on April 24, 2024, issues got here full circle.
Lots has modified within the 4 years between these two information cycles. Again then, TikTok was a rising sensation that many individuals didn’t perceive; now, it’s one of many largest social media platforms, the originator of a generation-defining content material medium, and a music-industry juggernaut.
What has additionally modified is my outlook on the difficulty. For a very long time, I assumed TikTok would discover a approach out of the political tensions, however I’m more and more pessimistic about its future. And I’ve even much less hope for different Chinese language tech corporations attempting to go world. If the TikTok saga tells us something, it’s that their Chinese language roots might be scrutinized ceaselessly, it doesn’t matter what they do.
I don’t imagine TikTok has develop into a bigger safety risk now than it was in 2020. There have all the time been points with the app, like potential operational affect by the Chinese language authorities, the black-box algorithms that produce unpredictable outcomes, and the truth that mother or father firm ByteDance by no means managed to separate the US aspect and the China aspect cleanly, regardless of efforts (one referred to as Mission Texas) to retailer and course of American knowledge regionally.
However none of these issues acquired worse over the past 4 years. And apparently, whereas discussions in 2020 nonetheless revolved round potential cures like establishing knowledge facilities within the US to retailer American knowledge or having a corporation like Oracle audit operations, these sorts of fixes aren’t within the regulation handed this 12 months. So long as it nonetheless has Chinese language house owners, the app isn’t permissible within the US. The one factor it will probably do to outlive right here is switch possession to a US entity.
That’s the chilly, onerous fact not just for TikTok however for different Chinese language corporations too. In at present’s political local weather, any affiliation with China and the Chinese language authorities is seen as unacceptable. It’s a far cry from the 2010s, when Chinese language corporations may dream about creating a killer app and discovering audiences and buyers across the globe—one thing many did pull off.
There’s one thing I wrote 4 years in the past that also rings true at present: TikTok is the bellwether for Chinese language corporations attempting to go world.
Nearly all of Chinese language tech giants, like Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu, function primarily inside China’s borders. TikTok was the primary to realize mass recognition in a lot of different nations the world over and develop into a part of day by day life for individuals outdoors China. To many Chinese language startups, it confirmed that the onerous work of attempting to study international nations and customers can ultimately repay, and it’s well worth the time and funding to strive.
