TikTok has appointed Ziad Ojakli as head of public policy for the Americas, a veteran government affairs executive, as the company races to finalize the sale of its US operations.
Axios reported on Tuesday (November 25), citing an internal post from ByteDance CEO Shou Zi Chew, that Ziad Ojakli will assume the role on December 1. He replaces Michael Beckerman, who spent more than five years steering TikTok‘s policy response to mounting political pressure and announced his departure in April. Beckerman will then transition to a global advisory position.
Before joining TikTok, Ojakli held senior government affairs positions at Ford, SoftBank and Boeing, and served in the George W. Bush administration.
In the memo, Chew said: “Ziad brings vast experience from his roles in public service and as a leader at global, industry-leading companies.”
“I am confident he will continue to drive our teams in our mission to become the most trusted platform through proactive outreach, education, and transparency.”
“Ziad brings vast experience from his roles in public service and as a leader at global, industry-leading companies.”
Shou Zi Chew, ByteDance
The executive change comes amid a critical time for the video-sharing app as its parent company ByteDance is working to sell about 80% of its US assets to a group of American investors. US President Donald Trump‘s executive order in September set a late January deadline for completing the transaction, which is required under a 2024 law signed by then-President Joe Biden and designed to address national security concerns.
Under the proposed structure, a group of three investors including Oracle and private equity firm Silver Lake would hold approximately 50% of TikTok US, Reuters reported in September. Existing ByteDance shareholders would retain about 30%, while ByteDance itself would hold less than 20% to meet legal requirements.
The arrangement has drawn questions from US lawmakers across both sides. Representative John Moolenaar, the Republican chairman of the House Select Committee on China, said in October that a licensing agreement for the TikTok algorithm would raise “serious concerns.”
“I think anytime you have (China) with leverage over the algorithm, I think that’s a problem,” Moolenaar was quoted by Reuters as saying at an event at the Hudson Institute.
Democratic Senator Ed Markey raised questions about the deal structure on Monday (November 24). In a letter to Trump, Markey said: “Your repeated unlawful extensions of the divestment deadline and vague comments about the deal raise significant questions about whether you have been able to secure an agreement that keeps TikTok online and addresses the national security concerns posed by ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok.”
“Congress and the American people need to understand the terms and status of this supposed agreement.”
Last month, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China has approved a deal for TikTok in the US. However, Markey on Monday said, “it’s unclear whether China has even agreed to any TikTok deal.”
Markey said in his letter to Trump: “Beijing has never confirmed that it has agreed to a TikTok deal; in fact, after Xi’s meeting with you a few weeks ago, the Chinese government would say only that ‘the Chinese side will work with the US side to properly address issues related to TikTok.’”
“This haphazard approach raises serious questions about the future of TikTok and your efforts to address its national security risks to the United States.”
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