The US version of TikTok might still use the Chinese algorithm

A potential TikTok deal emerged Monday between the US and China, two days before the Trump administration's latest sell or be banned deadline. Now, attention is shifting to the app's Chinese algorithm, with the Financial Times reporting it will be used in the US version.

Wang Jingtao, deputy director of the China's national internet regulator, told reporters that the deal included "licensing the algorithm and other intellectual property rights." The Financial Times further reports that US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said a US version of TikTok would have some "Chinese characteristics" but that American investors would control it.

That's a significant turnaround as TikTok's algorithm has been at the heart of many conversations and analysis about the app's presence in the US. Lawmakers have sought to analyze how it operates and pushed for TikTok to be banned or sold in ...