How TikTok defeated Trump:
, the billionaire head of TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and the discussions went as far as to consider turning off TikTok’s algorithmic For You feed during the presidential election, a drastic action disabling the social network’s signature feature.
An almost unparalleled corporate drama has continued to play out since TikTok ran afoul of former President Donald Trump. In August, Trump ordered a fast-paced sale of the business, saying he’d ban TikTok if that didn’t happen. By month’s end, TikTok’s CEO, former Disney executive Kevin Mayer,, leaving Zhang to contend with Trump and TikTok’s suitors.
Global politics aside, Chew has internal challenges. TikTok’s fourth leader in a year, he will have to deal with what numerous current and former employees describe as a workplace built on mistrust, suspicion and secrecy. “I’m not disputing that some employees believe that,” a TikTok spokesman says. “But I would dispute that is the widespread belief.”
ByteDance was something of a savior for Musical.ly. It hadn’t found a buyer in any of the big U.S. tech firms, whose thinking generally seemed to be: “It’s just lip sync—how big can it be?” recalls GGV Capital managing partner Hans Tung, who invested in Musical.ly and played matchmaker between its founders and Zhang. “I know how ambitious he is, how good the algorithm is and how he wants to build a global company...so I encouraged both sides to help each other.
TikTokers in America were expected to be available to answer questions and attend meetings in the evenings when overseas counterparts commenced work. Everyone used Lark, the ByteDance-created communications application similar to Slack. And TikTokers felt obligated to respond to Buzzes—message notifications sent via Lark—even in the dead of night. Adding to the always-on pressure: Lark has read receipts, and they can’t be turned off.
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