As TikTok Files Lawsuit, Employees Ponder Their Future

The day President Joe Biden signed a law that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if it doesn't cut ties with its Chinese parent, ByteDance, within a year, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and other senior executives led an all-hands meeting for staff, reassuring them that TikTok will successfully fight the new law. Chew struck an optimistic tone. At one point, according to six employees in attendance, the CEO joked with the app’s head of U.S. public policy, Michael Beckerman: “You know they are going to make a movie out of all of this someday. Michael, who is going to play you?”

The comment annoyed some staffers, who felt the quip was too lighthearted given the gravity of the threat. One of the employees said the broad message that TikTok would win the battle was an “empty promise.”