If you’ve spent any time on the "For You" page lately, you’ve probably seen the frantic videos. Creators crying. Users hoarding their favorite recipes. Everyone asking the same thing: when is TikTok closing?
Honestly, the answer has changed so many times it’s enough to give you whiplash.
But right now, we finally have a date that actually matters. Mark your calendar for January 22, 2026. That is the day everything changes for TikTok in the United States.
Is it "closing" in the sense that the app will disappear from your phone and turn into a gray icon? Not exactly. But the TikTok you know today—the one owned by the Chinese company ByteDance—is essentially on its deathbed. What comes next is basically a massive corporate transplant.
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The drama started way back in 2024 when President Biden signed the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act." It sounds like a mouthful, but the goal was simple: sell TikTok or get out.
ByteDance fought it. They went to court, argued about the First Amendment, and lost. The Supreme Court eventually weighed in, and by early 2025, it looked like the lights were going out. TikTok even briefly "went dark" on January 18, 2025, for about twenty-four hours. It was chaos.
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Then Donald Trump took office.
Despite his earlier attempts to ban the app during his first term, he pivoted. He promised to "save" TikTok. Throughout 2025, he used a series of executive orders to push the deadline back, week after week, month after month. He was essentially playing a high-stakes game of chicken with the legal system to give a group of American investors time to scrape together the cash for a buyout.
Now, we’re at the finish line. A deal has been signed. On January 22, 2026, TikTok is scheduled to officially transition into a new entity: TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC.
Who is buying TikTok and will it stay the same?
The new owners aren't just one person. It's a consortium led by Oracle, Silver Lake, and an Emirati firm called MGX. Oracle’s founder, Larry Ellison, has been a key player in this for years.
Here is the weird part: ByteDance isn’t fully leaving the building.
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Under the current deal, ByteDance will keep a 20% stake. The American group will own roughly 45%, and the rest will be split among various stakeholders. This is the "qualified divestiture" that the government demanded.
But will the app feel different? Yes. Very.
- The Algorithm: This is the big one. The "secret sauce" that makes TikTok so addictive is being rebuilt. Because of national security rules, the new US version has to be "retrained" on American data. It won't have access to the global ByteDance code anymore.
- Data Storage: Oracle is essentially turning into TikTok's digital landlord. Every bit of your data will live on Oracle’s servers in the US, with zero access allowed from China.
- Content Moderation: Instead of global teams, a new US-based board—filled with national security experts—will decide what stays and what goes.
Is TikTok closing for everyone?
Nope. If you’re reading this from London, Tokyo, or Toronto, nothing changes. This is a "Great Wall" being built specifically around the US version of the app.
There is a real risk, though. Some experts, like those at Forrester, have warned that a "US-only" TikTok might lose its magic. If the new algorithm isn't as good at guessing that you suddenly want to see 19th-century woodworking videos at 2 AM, users might start drifting toward YouTube Shorts or Instagram Reels.
The app isn't "closing" so much as it is being "reborn" as an American company. It’s like when your favorite local restaurant gets bought by a massive national chain. The sign on the door looks the same, and they still serve the same burger, but the vibe is just... off.
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What should you do right now?
If you’re a creator or a business owner, you can't just sit around and wait for January 22.
Back up your content. Seriously. There’s no guarantee the transition to the new USDS entity will be seamless. Use tools to download your videos without watermarks and keep them on a hard drive.
Diversify your platforms. If 90% of your income comes from TikTok, you’re in a dangerous spot. Start pushing your followers to a newsletter, a YouTube channel, or even a Threads account. You don't want to be the person who loses everything because a server migration went sideways in late January.
Watch for the rebrand. There are rumors that once the deal closes, the app might eventually change its name to something entirely different to distance itself from the "ban" era. Keep your handles consistent across all social media so your fans can find you if "TikTok" becomes "something else" overnight.
Ultimately, TikTok is sticking around, but the era of the "global" TikTok in America is ending. The next few weeks are going to be messy, loud, and full of bugs. Just stay nimble.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Download your data: Go to Settings > Account > Download your data to get a full archive of your profile.
- Cross-post immediately: Start uploading your top-performing TikToks to YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels to "train" those algorithms on your content before the January deadline.
- Audit your links: Ensure your "Link in Bio" points to a platform you own (like a website or email list) so you don't lose contact with your audience during the ownership shift.