The long and winding road over the fate of TikTok — the enormously popular social video platform that has been a force in American youth culture and entertainment — has come to an end.

After years of questions about TikTok’s future in America, the social media platform and its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, have finalized the app’s U.S. joint venture.

The announcement closes the chapter on a saga that began six years ago when President Trump during his first term sought to ban the platform, citing national security concerns involving ByteDance.

But Trump shifted his views on the platform after ByteDance and its affiliates agreed to divest majority ownership of U.S. operation to an American-led investor group.

The joint venture deal was established under an executive order signed by Trump in September.

In an announcement posted Thursday, TikTok said the U.S. joint venture now has three managing investors: Silver Lake, Oracle and Emirati investment firm MGX, each holding 15%, with ByteDance retaining 19.9% of investments.

The new firm will be headed by Adam Presser, who previously worked as TikTok’s head of operations and trust and safety. He will join a seven-member, majority-American board of directors that includes TikTok’s Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew.

In a Truth Social post, Trump thanked Chinese leader Xi Jinping “for working with us and, ultimately, approving the Deal” and said it was a “dramatic, final, and beautiful conclusion.”

“I am so happy to have helped in saving TikTok!” he wrote. “I only hope that long into the future I will be remembered by those who use and love TikTok.”

ByteDance had been under pressure to divest its ownership in the app’s U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban after Congress passed a law that went into effect a year ago.

“China’s position on TikTok has been consistent and clear,” Guo Jiakun, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson in Beijing, said Friday according to the Associated Press.

Under new safeguards, there will be more protections for users’ data and algorithms, as well as better content moderation and software assurances, the company said.

The new version will operate under “defined safeguards that protect national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users,” the company said in its statement Thursday.

These protections will be secured by Oracle’s cloud environment. The tech company’s Executive Chairman Larry Ellison has also been making headlines for attempting to purchase Warner Bros. Discovery through Paramount.

Ramesh Srinivasan, professor of information studies at UCLA, said he finds the deal to be “deeply concerning.” He said TikTok will become more similar to American-owned social media applications when it comes to access to data and how it’s monetized.

“But at the same time, the data is going to be captured by folks like Mr. Ellison, who is very close to the president,” said Srinivasan. “That raises major concerns about the incredibly close affinity the president has with these tech oligarchs. This means TikTok will increasingly serve the dictates of this administration.”

Srinivasan also raises concerns that this deal could influence what people can see on their algorithms, especially when it comes to global news.

He added, “Our younger people may end up getting manipulated without any disclosure or knowledge.”

According to TikTok, there are over 200 million U.S. users and 7.5 million businesses that use the platform.

The news, announced last month, comes as a relief to many U.S.-based influencers, many of whom operate in Southern California, who rely on the social media platform for their livelihoods. The same day the news of the joint venture broke, TikTok hosted its inaugural TikTok Awards at the Hollywood Palladium. Keith Lee, a food reviewer with over 17 million followers, celebrated the announcement among other attendees.

“[TikTok] is the best way to reach people and I know so many people who rely on it to support their families,” said Lee, in an interview with The Times. “For me, it’s my career now so I can’t imagine it not being around.”

The app is largely responsible for reshaping the way young Americans shop and consume entertainment. One example of that can be found in the TikTok Shop platform where small businesses and brands sell their products directly to consumers and engage influencers to help with promotion. In many ways, the platform can resemble Gen Z’s version of QVC.

The app’s roots date back to 2014, when Musical.ly, an app of a similar nature was launched in Shanghai. In 2016, Chinese tech company ByteDance launched a similar platform in China called Douyin. As the apps grew in popularity separately, ByteDance picked up on its potential, purchased Musical.ly in 2017 and combined all these platforms into one, named TikTok. Over the next few years, the app began its rapid ascent , hooking in users with a curated algorithm and viral trends.

The deal removes a shadow that was cast over the future of TikTok, which has become one of the world’s most dominant social media platforms and has a large presence in Culver City. The company’s business in the U.S. had been uncertain for many years amid legislators’ security concerns about ByteDance’s ties to China.

Trump allowed TikTok to keep operating in the country and in September signed the executive order outlining the new joint venture.

As economic uncertainty and steep tariffs shook global trade in 2025, the Port of Los Angeles remained the busiest marine gateway in the country and recorded its third busiest year ever.

Executive director Gene Seroka outlined investments in infrastructure, technology and climate initiatives at the 11th annual State of the Port on Thursday. Near the waterfront in San Pedro, Seroka addressed a 930-person crowd that included Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles City Councilmember Tim McOsker.

The port is getting ready to meet ambitious climate goals and accommodate increasing cargo volume in the decades ahead, Seroka said. In 2028, the port will host six boating and sailing events during the Summer Olympic Games.

“From accelerated dips in volume to record highs, [2025] truly was a roller coaster,” Seroka said Thursday. “Cargo remains the lifeblood of the U.S. economy. American farmers, manufacturers, retailers and consumers all depend on how well we move that cargo.”

The Port of Los Angeles moved 10.2 million cargo containers last year, representing a less than 1% decrease from 2024. The port’s busiest year on record was 2021, when it processed 10.6 million containers in the midst of the pandemic.

2025 was characterized by volatility, Seroka said, as manufacturers and merchants scrambled to keep up with President Trump’s changing tariffs on key trade partners. As shippers frontloaded their goods to get ahead of import taxes, cargo volumes swung high and low.

In April, the port moved 842,806 containers, 9% more compared with the same time period in 2024. In May, cargo volume fell to 5% lower than the year prior. July was the busiest month in the port’s 118-year history with more than 1 million containers moved.

“Despite uncertainty and global instability regarding changing tariffs policies, the port stood strong, rising to the occasion and meeting this moment,” said Bass on Thursday.

The Port of Los Angeles has been the busiest in the U.S. for 26 consecutive years and generated $333 billion in trade in 2024. Combined, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach account for one out of every nine jobs in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.

As Seroka shared his vision for the future in the cavernous AltaSea facility, he emphasized the need to build bigger and smarter. Groups of stakeholders including terminal operators, cruise lines and union representatives sat at large round tables with green table cloths and floral centerpieces.

Applause followed the announcement that the latest air emissions report showed the Port of Los Angeles had achieved the lowest emissions on a per-container basis of any port in the world.

“We are moving more cargo than ever before with the lowest pollution footprint on record for every container shipped,” Seroka said.

Seroka also announced that the port saw a record 1.6 million passengers on 241 cruise calls last year. Pacific Cruise Terminals will build a new world-class cruise ship center in the port’s outer harbor, he said.

To maximize capacity for newer and bigger container ships, Seroka wanted to raise the 185-feet-high Vincent Thomas Bridge, which connects San Pedro to Terminal Island and Long Beach. Last November, the California State Transportation Agency rejected plans to raise the bridge during a planned re-decking project.

In October, the port released a Request for Proposals to evaluate the feasibility of a new Pier 500 marine container terminal that would increase the port’s capacity while staying on track with climate goals, Seroka said.

Several other infrastructure projects are on the horizon, such as the Maritime Support Facility being developed on 80 acres of land on Terminal Island as well as the Avalon Pedestrian Bridge, which will offer access to the new Wilmington Waterfront Promenade.

“This port must be ready for whatever is coming,” Seroka said. “Shifting trade policies are creating uncertainty and volatility, and the maritime supply chain is at the center of it all.”

Laurence Darmiento contributed to this report.