TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew's Congress showdown: Five key moments

Bruising, damaging, relentless. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew faced four-and-a-half hours of questioning astatine a US legislature proceeding connected Thursday.

As 1 congressman pointed out, immoderate radical tally marathons quicker than that.

Mr Chew volition surely beryllium feeling it, aft a torrid clip giving evidence. Many tech execs person stood earlier Congress, and they often don't get an casual ride.

But what was exceptional astir this proceeding was the stubborn, never-ending enactment of vicious questioning.

From some Democrats and Republicans, determination was nary let-up.

A spokesperson for TikTok said afterwards the politicians were "grandstanding". There is astir surely immoderate information to that.

But betwixt the sometimes frustratingly verbose questioning, we did larn a happening oregon two.

At 1 constituent successful the hearing, Mr Chew was asked by congresswoman Nanette Barragán, a Democrat, whether oregon not his ain children utilized TikTok.

He said they didn't due to the fact that they unrecorded successful Singapore. In that state the mentation of the app for children younger than 13 is not available.

Mr Chew did clarify that the children's mentation of the app is disposable successful the US, and helium would fto his children usage it if they were successful America.

Mr Chew kept talking astir a argumentation called "Project Texas", which volition store each information successful the US nether the ticker of American steadfast Oracle.

However, Project Texas is not afloat operational. As of now, Mr Chew confirmed that ByteDance engineers successful China bash person entree to data.

"We trust connected planetary interoperability, Chinese engineers person entree to data," helium said.

It was an admittance that politicians kept coming backmost to. Their constituent was that if information tin beryllium accessed by engineers successful China, it's hard to spot however the Chinese authorities couldn't besides entree it.

Perhaps Mr Chew's slightest palmy defence was his effort to region TikTok from ByteDance.

By immoderate explanation the Chinese institution owns TikTok. Mr Chew himself utilized to beryllium ByteDance's main fiscal officer.

When initially asked, Mr Chew didn't privation to accidental whether helium owned shares successful ByteDance.

Pressed by lawmakers, helium yet said helium did, but tried to downplay the connection.

Mr Chew mostly pulled his punches. He didn't often instrumentality the combat backmost to members of Congress. But determination were uncommon moments wherever helium did propulsion backmost - and effectively.

When quizzed connected TikTok's usage of idiosyncratic data, helium said: "With each owed respect, American companies don't person a large way grounds with information … Just look astatine Facebook and Cambridge Analytica."

It was a barbed comment, but a tenable constituent to make.

Harvesting of Facebook users' idiosyncratic accusation by Cambridge Analytica, a British governmental consultancy, and different third-party apps caused uproar erstwhile it emerged successful 2018.

There was bipartisan disapproval of TikTok to statesman with, but the level of distrust and scepticism from each sides was stark.

"Welcome to the astir bipartisan committee successful Congress," said Republican congressman Buddy Carter.

"Thank you, Mr Chew, for bringing Republicans and Democrats together," said Dan Crenshaw, a Republican.

It was truly rather thing to spot truthful galore politicians - who hold connected practically thing - agreeing wholeheartedly that TikTok was a information threat.

TikTok complained afterwards that not capable clip had been spent focusing connected the platform's measures to support information safe.

"Also not mentioned contiguous by members of the committee: the livelihoods of the 5 cardinal businesses connected TikTok oregon the [US Constitution] First Amendment implications of banning a level loved by 150 cardinal Americans," a TikTok spokesperson said.

TikTok has seemingly been spending millions of dollars successful an assertive lobbying effort successful Washington. If contiguous is thing to spell by, they are going to request to walk a batch more.