In a dramatic turn of events for the world’s most popular short-form video app, the United States and China have reached a framework agreement that could allow TikTok to keep operating in America, just days before a looming ban threatened to pull the plug on the platform for its 170 million U.S. users. The deal, hammered out during marathon trade talks in Madrid, marks the latest chapter in a saga that has entwined technology, geopolitics, and American culture.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the breakthrough on September 15, 2025, telling reporters that negotiators from both countries had agreed on a “framework” for the transfer of TikTok’s U.S. operations to American ownership. “We have a framework for a TikTok deal,” Bessent said, as reported by Quartz. The details remain closely guarded, with the White House emphasizing that the agreement is “between two private parties,” but Bessent confirmed that “the commercial terms have been agreed upon.”
The timing could not have been tighter. ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, faced a hard deadline of September 17, 2025, to reach a deal or see the app banned in the United States. The ban, first set into law by Congress in April 2024 and upheld by the Supreme Court in January 2025, required ByteDance to divest its American operations or risk losing access to the massive U.S. market. The app briefly went dark in January before then-newly elected President Donald Trump stepped in to grant a 75-day postponement—a reprieve that has since been extended three times, most recently in June.
President Trump himself took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to trumpet the news, writing, “A deal was also reached on a ‘certain’ company that young people in our Country very much wanted to save. They will be very happy! I will be speaking to President Xi on Friday. The relationship remains a very strong one!!!” According to Al Jazeera, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to hold a call on September 19, 2025, to finalize the agreement.
The two-day Madrid talks that led to the deal were part of broader efforts to ease tensions between the world’s two largest economies. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who was also present in Spain, described the negotiations as intense, with Chinese officials making “aggressive asks” on trade and technology in exchange for agreeing to divest from TikTok. “Our Chinese counterparts have come with a very aggressive ask,” Bessent acknowledged, adding pointedly, “We are not willing to sacrifice national security for a social media app.”
Indeed, national security concerns have been at the heart of the TikTok debate. The U.S. Justice Department has argued that ByteDance’s control of TikTok poses a risk due to the potential for Beijing to access sensitive data on millions of Americans. TikTok, for its part, has repeatedly denied these allegations, insisting its U.S. operations are run independently and that it has never shared user data with the Chinese government. ByteDance has also warned that a ban would undermine the free speech rights of its American users.
The White House, for now, is staying tight-lipped on the specifics. “We’re not going to talk about the commercial terms of the deal. It’s between two private parties, but the commercial terms have been agreed upon,” Bessent told Al Jazeera. What is clear is that the deal is expected to help de-escalate a tense trade standoff and could lay the groundwork for further talks between Washington and Beijing. Maria Pechurina, director of international trade at Peacock Tariff Consulting, told Al Jazeera that both delegations “explicitly linked the fate of TikTok to progress on tariff reductions and related trade concessions during their conversations in Madrid.”
For TikTok’s American users, the app’s survival is more than just a business story—it’s a cultural touchstone. The platform has become a vital marketing channel for brands, especially in the travel sector, with 69% of users discovering travel brands via TikTok and new hotel booking features rolling out, according to Skift. Its influence extends far into politics as well. In April 2024, pro-Trump videos on TikTok outnumbered those supporting then-Democratic nominee Joe Biden, The New York Times reported, citing internal data. Trump’s campaign made savvy use of the platform and other new media, engaging with right-leaning podcasts and influencers to reach conservative audiences and disillusioned men drawn to traditional notions of masculinity.
The app’s reach isn’t confined to the U.S., either. TikTok has played a role in spreading far-right narratives across Europe, influencing elections in Germany, Poland, Sweden, and France. According to a Pew Research Center study, news influencers on TikTok—those discussing current events and civic issues—are more likely to lean conservative, and their content supporting Trump outpaced that for his 2024 opponent, Kamala Harris.
Yet, the deal’s future isn’t entirely certain. Experts caution that, for China, the signing of a deal is often seen as the beginning of negotiations, not the end. “The devil would lie in the details behind the optics. Also expect much haggling on important details that may take years,” Usha Hayley, a professor of international business at Wichita State University, told Al Jazeera. She added, “The deal, when reached, would reflect the convergence of technology, national security, and geopolitics. TikTok sits at the centre of US concerns about data access, influence over public discourse, and Beijing’s reach into global tech.”
Speculation about who might ultimately take over TikTok’s U.S. operations has swirled for months. High-profile names such as Elon Musk, YouTube creator MrBeast, and billionaire investor Frank McCourt have all been floated as potential buyers, though no front-runner has emerged. The White House has declined to comment on the identities of any bidders, maintaining that the transaction is a matter for the involved private parties.
Meanwhile, the trade talks in Madrid touched on more than just TikTok. U.S. officials also discussed broader technology and economic issues with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng’s team. The talks lasted nearly six hours, with both sides stepping up contact in recent weeks in anticipation of a possible Trump-Xi summit in South Korea. Adding to the complexity, Chinese regulators on Monday announced that Nvidia’s $7 billion purchase of Mellanox Technologies in 2020 had violated competition laws, a move that rattled markets and underscored the fragile state of U.S.-China tech relations.
Looking ahead, all eyes are on Friday’s scheduled call between Trump and Xi. If the framework holds, it could mark a rare moment of compromise in an era of deepening rivalry between Washington and Beijing. But as seasoned observers of U.S.-China relations know, the story is far from over. For now, TikTok’s fate—and the digital lives of millions of Americans—hangs in the balance, waiting for the final word from the world’s two most powerful leaders.
In the coming days, the world will find out whether TikTok’s American dream continues—or if the curtain closes on one of the internet’s most influential platforms.
