ByteDance board member ‘optimistic’ TikTok will find non-sale options in US, report says

TikTok is considering alternative solutions to selling its US business, as owner ByteDance continues the fight to keep its 170 million American users after a reprieve from the Trump administration, a board member of ByteDance was quoted by Chinese magazine Caixin as saying.

ByteDance board member William Ford said he was optimistic the company could find solutions that address the national security concerns of the US government without requiring the company to sell TikTok’s US operations, according to a report by Caixin on Thursday. Ford made the comments on the sidelines of the 2025 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

It is the first time that a ByteDance board director has spoken publicly about TikTok’s fate since Trump’s second presidency began.

Ford, chairman of ByteDance shareholder General Atlantic, was quoted as saying that the exploration of non-sale options is key to the company’s talks with the Trump administration, while such engagement with the Biden administration had been minimal.

In a separate interview with Bloomberg TV, Ford said the alternatives may include “a change of control of some kind” locally to comply with US legislation.

Ford also expressed high hopes for dialogue between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. “That might help create a much more constructive environment, a much higher level of engagement that could lead to a positive solution,” he told Bloomberg TV.