TikTok has had an increasingly convoluted path in the U.S. due to the varying interests between the Trump administration, the Chinese government, tech companies, and service providers. Now, according to a report by The Information, the popular short-form video platform plans to build a new version of its app for users in the U.S., ahead of a planned sale of the app to a group of investors.
The new version of the app is due for release in app stores on September 5th and will be named M2, according to The Verge.
President Trump told Maria Bartiromo on Fox News: “We have a buyer for TikTok. I think we’ll probably need China’s approval, and I think President Xi will probably do it.” President Trump said that he plans to reveal the investors’ identities in the next few weeks. The new developments mean the main TikTok app would remain under Chinese control, owned by technology company ByteDance, and a forked version would be sold to an American company, which will be distributed in September to U.S. app stores. The agreement for the sale and the new U.S. version of the app would satisfy the law’s requirements.
Since 2019, TikTok has raised red flags for U.S. national security, due to the app’s data practices and its ties to China. Earlier this year, a ban, or sale to U.S. interests of the app’s business, was voted into law by Congress, signed by former president Joe Biden, and upheld by the Supreme Court earlier this year. The legal deadline for the shutdown or sale was January 19, 2025, the day before President Donald Trump took office. Since then, President Trump has issued a series of extensions on TikTok’s ban in the U.S, in what many consider a legally dubious move. The latest extension runs through September 17th, following the new app’s planned launch date.
Despite President Trump’s confidence that the newest deal will bring TikTok under American ownership, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, was less decisive on the issue. On Monday, when asked for an update on TikTok, he said, “China has reiterated its principle and position on issues related to TikTok on multiple occasions.” The deal comes as the Chinese government is still wrangling with the Trump administration over tariffs.
