Tiktok Ban News & Analysis — The Information

Recent Articles about Tiktok Ban

What Anthropic Stands to Gain From Pentagon Stance

What Anthropic Stands to Gain From Pentagon Stance

By Martin Peers · Mar 2, 2026 5:05pm PST

Could fighting with the Pentagon be the best thing that ever happened to Anthropic? On Friday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s designation of Anthropic as a “supply chain risk” looked like it could pose an existential threat to the AI firm. Not only could it lose customers, but, depending on how broadly the designation is interpreted, it could... Could fighting with the Pentagon be the best thing that ever happened to Anthropic? On Friday,...

ByteDance’s Singapore office. Photo by Claudio Schwarz.

ByteDance Is a Steal Even Without TikTok

By Juro Osawa and Jing Yang · Jan 21, 2025 6:00am PST · 5 comments

TikTok might have restarted operations in the U.S., but investors in the app’s parent company, ByteDance, remain in the dark about its future. For those debating buying into ByteDance shares, however, it doesn’t matter. Whatever happens, ByteDance stock is severely undervalued. Even if TikTok were to disappear entirely from the U.S.,... TikTok might have restarted operations in the U.S., but investors in the app’s parent...

Photo via Getty

TikTok Users’ Move to Chinese App RedNote Alarms Beijing’s Censors

By Qianer Liu and Juro Osawa · Jan 16, 2025 5:51am PST · 4 comments

A pending ban of TikTok in the U.S. is prompting a flood of TikTok users to try out Chinese social media app RedNote. Chinese regulators aren’t happy. The Cyberspace Administration of China, the country’s Internet watchdog, is concerned that English-language content showing up on RedNote may contain politically sensitive posts that... A pending ban of TikTok in the U.S. is prompting a flood of TikTok users to try out Chinese...

Photo via Getty

TikTok’s Vibe as It Heads to Supreme Court

By Kaya Yurieff and Wayne Ma · Jan 9, 2025 2:30pm PST

Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

TikTok’s Vibe as It Heads to Supreme Court

By Kaya Yurieff and Wayne Ma · Jan 9, 2025 2:30pm PST

I’m in Washington D.C. ahead of oral arguments at the Supreme Court on Friday morning, where TikTok will argue against a U.S. law that could ban the app in 10 days if it doesn’t sever ties with its Chinese parent ByteDance. Despite this threat, TikTok is pushing forward as normal—so much so that this week at the major tech conference... I’m in Washington D.C. ahead of oral arguments at the Supreme Court on Friday morning, where...

Elad Gil. Photo via Getty

Culling of Money-Losing Startups is Well Underway

By Martin Peers · Jan 2, 2025 5:00pm PST

A week before Christmas, venture capitalist Elad Gil tweeted, “Lots of year end company shutdowns…happening right now,” offering a tantalizing hint of behind-the-scenes drama. Gil’s tweet appears to have been on the money: At least three companies have closed their doors since then—accounting firm Bench last week, LinkedIn rival Polywork earlier... A week before Christmas, venture capitalist Elad Gil tweeted, “Lots of year end company shutdowns...

Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz. Photo via Getty.

Creator Economy

Trump’s AG Pick Is a Hail Mary for TikTok

By Kaya Yurieff · Nov 13, 2024 2:49pm PST

The new Trump administration is shaping up to be quite friendly to TikTok and its hopes of survival in the U.S. The latest development: President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday announced he wants to appoint Republican representative Matt Gaetz from Florida as his attorney general. The new Trump administration is shaping up to be quite friendly to TikTok and its hopes of...

Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok Sees Trump Victory As App’s Best Hope

By Juro Osawa and Kaya Yurieff · Nov 5, 2024 1:40pm PST

Donald Trump used to be TikTok’s biggest threat. But now, four years after he tried to ban the app, he may be TikTok’s last hope for survival. As Americans vote in Tuesday’s election, TikTok’s top executives believe the company would be better off with a Trump presidency than a Harris administration. Trump has come out in... Donald Trump used to be TikTok’s biggest threat. But now, four years after he tried to ban...

Demonstrators hold signs in support of TikTok outside the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. in March. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

TikTok’s Tougher Legal Fight

By Kaya Yurieff · Sep 11, 2024 2:24pm PDT

Demonstrators hold signs in support of TikTok outside the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. in March. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

Creator Economy

TikTok’s Tougher Legal Fight

By Kaya Yurieff · Sep 11, 2024 2:24pm PDT

I’ll be in Washington on Monday, when TikTok’s legal team will argue that a new law that could shut down the app in January is an infringement on Americans’ freedom of speech. Even as the deadline to this ban gets closer, I’ve been surprised by how unfazed many people, from TikTok staff to the company’s business partners and creators, have been... I’ll be in Washington on Monday, when TikTok’s legal team will argue that a new law that could...

The mother of a child who died doing an internet challenge speaks during a rally to hold tech and social media companies accountable for taking steps to protect kids and teens online on January 31 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images.

Creator Economy

The Crush of Online Safety Bills Is Too Big to Ignore

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jun 26, 2024 3:09pm PDT · 2 comments

The Kids Online Safety Act, a federal bill that requires social media platforms to take “reasonable measures” to prevent harm, is scheduled to be considered by the House Energy and Commerce Committee Thursday. It’s a small step for proponents of the bill after years of political rumblings about the need for tougher controls over social... The Kids Online Safety Act, a federal bill that requires social media platforms to take “...

Creators on stage at VidCon 2023. Photo by Unique Nicole/Getty Images.

Creator Economy

What to Expect at VidCon

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 25, 2024 2:00pm PDT

I’m in Los Angeles this week ahead of VidCon, the annual conference focused on creators. The organizers of the event, which last year drew 55,000 people, expect the biggest theme this year to be the creator economy’s “coming of age.” After the boom in venture funding for startups and hype around the sector dissipated, investments have ... I’m in Los Angeles this week ahead of VidCon, the annual conference focused on creators. The...

Demonstrators hold signs in support of TikTok in front of the U.S. Capitol Building earlier today. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

The TikTok Political Debate Is Over, Bar the Shouting

By Martin Peers · Apr 23, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 5 comments

The political debate about TikTok is all but over, with the sell-or-ban bill now virtually assured of becoming law, judging by its progress in the Senate today. Once the formalities are over, we’ll see TikTok or its users file a legal challenge, which could delay implementation. Even so, the final passage of this legislation is momentous. The... The political debate about TikTok is all but over, with the sell-or-ban bill now virtually...

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Altman Is More Powerful Than Ever; Trump’s TikTok Reversal

By Martin Peers · Mar 8, 2024 4:30pm PST

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Altman Is More Powerful Than Ever; Trump’s TikTok Reversal

By Martin Peers · Mar 8, 2024 4:30pm PST

If you’re one of those people who was obsessed with last November’s OpenAI drama, you can wipe it from your memory. The ChatGPT creator put CEO Sam Altman back on its board late Friday, we scooped (the company later confirmed the details in this blog post). You may remember, unless you’ve already erased your memory, that Altman lost his board... If you’re one of those people who was obsessed with last November’s OpenAI drama, you can wipe it...

Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok Executives Fretted About China Ties of CapCut Editing-App

By Juro Osawa · Feb 20, 2024 6:00am PST · 2 comments

Last year, the second most downloaded free app in the U.S. on iPhones was CapCut, a video-editing app made by TikTok’s parent ByteDance and popular with TikTok users who use its templates and filters to create videos for the app. But CapCut—unlike TikTok itself—is directly run by ByteDance executives in China, a point confirmed... Last year, the second most downloaded free app in the U.S. on iPhones was CapCut, a video-editing...

Photo by Erin Beach.

Creator Economy Summit

TikTok U.S. Shopping Chief: Open to Big Retail Partnerships to Fill Shopping Aims

By Erin Woo and Ann Gehan · Apr 20, 2023 1:54pm PDT · 2 comments

TikTok has ambitions to transform its app into a U.S. shopping destination and is open to working with big retail partners including Walmart to make that happen, according to TikTok’s head shopping executive in the U.S. “If anyone from Walmart is here, come talk to me,” Sandie Hawkins, TikTok’s general manager of U.S.... TikTok has ambitions to transform its app into a U.S. shopping destination and is open to working...

Photo by AP

Creator Economy

ByteDance’s Social App Lemon8 Wins New Users

By Isabelle Sarraf · Mar 29, 2023 2:37pm PDT

As TikTok faces threats of a ban in the U.S., its China-based parent company ByteDance has been courting creators for Lemon8, its app that rivals Instagram. Self-described as a “hobbyist community,” the image-based app’s homepage features TikTok-like “Following” and “For You” feeds, and divides content into categories such as fashion, beauty and... As TikTok faces threats of a ban in the U.S., its China-based parent company ByteDance has been...

Signage is displayed at the TikTok Creator's Lab 2019 event hosted by Bytedance Ltd. in Tokyo. Photo: Bloomberg

ByteDance’s Big Victory Dance

By Amir Efrati · Jun 17, 2021 6:12pm PDT

Signage is displayed at the TikTok Creator's Lab 2019 event hosted by Bytedance Ltd. in Tokyo. Photo: Bloomberg

ByteDance’s Big Victory Dance

By Amir Efrati · Jun 17, 2021 6:12pm PDT

This morning, the business world learned two things about TikTok owner ByteDance as it moves toward a public stock offering, the most anticipated consumer tech listing since Alibaba in 2014. First, the company revealed its 2020 revenue and operating loss to employees—and by extension, to the press. Using some back-of-the-envelope math,... This morning, the business world learned two things about TikTok owner ByteDance as it moves...

Microsoft's main campus in 2017. Photo by Bloomberg

Microsoft Joins Shift to Remote Work: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Oct 9, 2020 5:02pm PDT

Microsoft joined the group of companies permanently allowing their employees to work from home at least some of the time. Also in this group, to varying degrees, are Twitter, Slack and Facebook, all responding to the greater flexibility employees have discovered since Covid forced remote work on everyone. Still, despite the apparent momentum in... Microsoft joined the group of companies permanently allowing their employees to work from home at...

Europe's competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager. Photo by Bloomberg

Europe’s Regulatory Traffic Jam: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jul 14, 2020 5:31pm PDT

European regulators seem to be caught in a traffic jam of cases against big U.S. tech companies. It’s a situation we could easily see develop in the U.S. in the not-too-distant future, an interesting wrinkle that is likely to work to some companies’ advantage.The logjam in Europe has emerged in recent days as we have been waiting to... European regulators seem to be caught in a traffic jam of cases against big U.S. tech companies....

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg

Apple’s News Loss: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jun 29, 2020 5:31pm PDT

The value of Apple’s free News app shrank just a little on Monday after the New York Times said it would pull the few articles it made available for the service. More broadly, The Times’ decision suggests why Apple may face headwinds in its efforts to make its giant services business even bigger.The Times didn’t like the fact... The value of Apple’s free News app shrank just a little on Monday after the New York Times...