TikTok’s U.S. public policy chief, Michael Beckerman, plans to leave his Washington-based role and transition to a global advisory position, according to The Information, which cites a staff memo. Beckerman has been a central figure in TikTok’s efforts to fight potential U.S. government bans since joining the company.

In 2021, Beckerman became the company’s first executive to testify before Congress, appearing before a subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee. Republicans, in particular, pressed Beckerman on concerns regarding TikTok’s handling of data on its users.

His departure comes as TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, faces ongoing pressure to divest its U.S. assets. Earlier this month, President Donald Trump extended the deadline for the sale by 75 days, marking his second delay in enforcing the 2024 law that mandated ByteDance to divest TikTok by January 19, 2025, or face a U.S. ban.

Deal Framework Faces Complications

White House officials believed they were nearing an agreement that would spin off TikTok’s U.S. operations into a new American-based company. The proposed structure would give U.S. investors majority ownership while allowing ByteDance to maintain a minority position.

However, ByteDance representatives informed the White House that China would not approve the deal until trade and tariff negotiations could take place. This reversal occurred after Trump announced sweeping tariffs affecting global imports, including those from China.

“We were pretty close to a deal for TikTok,” Trump stated on April 6. “And then China changed the deal because of tariffs. If I gave a little cut in tariffs, they’d have approved that deal in 15 minutes.”

China Asserts Regulatory Authority

China has declared that any TikTok deal must comply with Chinese law. “The specific business arrangements must comply with Chinese law, including the export of technology, which must be approved by the Chinese government,” a spokesperson for China’s commerce ministry states.

The algorithm TikTok relies on is deemed core to ByteDance’s overall operations, and according to a law Beijing implemented in 2020, any export of the algorithm is subject to approval by the Chinese government.

Multiple Bidders Express Interest

The extended deadline provides additional time for potential U.S. buyers to refine their offers. Numerous parties have expressed interest in acquiring TikTok, including AppLovin, Amazon, Wyoming entrepreneur Reid Rasner, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, AI search engine startup Perplexity AI, and former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

A ByteDance spokesperson acknowledged discussions with the U.S. government regarding a “potential solution” but noted that “an agreement has not been executed” and “there are key matters to be resolved.”