TikTok reorganizes US operations as Trump 'deal' still up in the air

Changes include layoffs and work on a standalone app, sources say

20250711 Tiktok

China-based ByteDance now has until September to divest TikTok's U.S. operations or face a ban in the country.  © Getty Images

YIFAN YU and CISSY ZHOU

PALO ALTO, California/HONG KONG -- TikTok is restructuring its U.S. operations, including revamping its trust and safety team and its e-commerce arm TikTok Shop, as the popular social media app waits for clarity on a deal to sell its American business that President Donald Trump indicated was close. 

The ByteDance-owned platform has undergone a major overhaul of its trust and safety and TikTok Shop teams, including layoffs in multiple U.S. offices, according to two people familiar with the matter. The layoffs are partly a reorganization in preparation for the spin-off of TikTok's U.S. operations, and partly an internal adjustment after TikTok Shop failed to reach certain performance goals, the people said.

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