TikTok CEO testifies on Capitol Hill as app faces possible ban

Lawmakers press TikTok CEO over data security, misinformation and other issues.

ByMax Zahn
Last Updated: March 23, 2023, 9:39 AM EDT

A high-stakes standoff between the U.S. government and social media app TikTok over a potential ban had its reckoning on Thursday when TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testified before a committee of House lawmakers.

The China-based app, which counts more than 150 million U.S. users each month, has faced growing scrutiny from government officials over fears that user data could fall into the possession of the Chinese government and the app could be weaponized by China to spread misinformation.

There is no evidence that TikTok has shared U.S. user data with the Chinese government, but policymakers fear that the Chinese government could compel the company to do so.

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Here's how the news developed. All times Eastern.
Mar 23, 2023, 9:39 AM EDT

TikTok CEO expected to directly confront possible ban

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will address a potential ban, outlining how such a measure would ultimately harm the U.S. economy, according to his prepared remarks posted on the House committee's website.

TikTok hosts accounts for 5,000 U.S.-based businesses and employs 7,000 workers across the country, Chew said in a video posted on Tuesday.

"We do not believe that a ban that hurts American small businesses, damages the country's economy, silences the voices of over 150 million Americans, and reduces competition in an increasingly concentrated market is the solution to a solvable problem," the prepared remarks say.

Chew plans to tout Project Texas, an ongoing effort that he says keeps all data on U.S. users within the country through a partnership with Austin, Texas-based cloud computing company Oracle.

"Bans are only appropriate when there are no alternatives. But we do have an alternative," Chew will say.

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