TikTok now has 150 million US active users, CEO tells Congress

When TikTok CEO Show Zi Chu testifies before Congress on Thursday, he plans to release new inside data that suggests the popular video-sharing app is far more involved in American daily life than anyone realizes.

Currently, TikTok reports that about 100 million people in the US are regular users of the app. But when Chu testifies before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, he will say the number has already reached 150 million, according to a senior Democratic strategist who advises TikTok.

This 50 percent jump in monthly active users in the US suggests that the app has become even more entrenched in the US in the nearly three years that Washington — under two presidential administrations — has tried to curb it.

Bilateral lawmakers and the White House argue that TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, is a national security risk because Beijing could use it to influence US public opinion or gain access to Americans’ data for nefarious purposes such as espionage.

In December, President Joe Biden signed into law a spending bill banning TikTok from being used on U.S. government devices. The Justice Department and the FBI are currently investigating TikTok and ByteDance, including allegations that company employees have been spying on journalists.

Chu’s testimony came as Washington’s efforts to potentially ban TikTok in the US were reaching a fever pitch. Now Biden is backing a bipartisan bill that could do just that, and his administration recently told TikTok that either its Chinese owners would sell their stakes in the company or the app could face a US ban.

Its first appearance before Congress will mark TikTok’s biggest showdown with lawmakers to date – and the app plans to rely on users it considers “creators” to counter efforts to ban it, as well as criticism that it’s a national security threat.

Content Source

Dallas Press News – Latest News:
Dallas Local News || Fort Worth Local News | Texas State News || Crime and Safety News || National news || Business News || Health News

Related Articles

Back to top button