TikTok is laying off employees globally, with up to 1,000 people affected, mainly in the operations, content, and marketing teams. The exact number of layoffs is not officially confirmed, but reports indicate that the global user operations team, responsible for user support and communication, is being disbanded. Employees not affected by the layoffs may be reassigned to other departments.
ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, is facing challenges due to recent US legislation banning TikTok in the country. With approximately 150 million US users and its largest team of about 7,000 employees based there, the US is a significant revenue source for the app. The US government has stated that TikTok can continue operating only if it is purchased by an American company.
ByteDance, however, is resisting selling TikTok and has chosen to legally challenge the US government’s decision, arguing that the ban violates the First Amendment rights of TikTok users in the US. As pressure from the US government grows, the question remains whether ByteDance will eventually consider selling TikTok, possibly without including its proprietary algorithm.
