During his four-hour testimony before Congress on Thursday, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew failed to persuade US lawmakers that the app is not linked to the Chinese government, leading to speculation about a potential nationwide ban.
Chew was grilled by a group of hostile politicians on the House energy and commerce committee who grew increasingly incredulous as he appeared to waver under their questioning.
He conceded that there is still some data that needs to be deleted, which is accessible to TikTok’s staff in China.
While he sought to distance TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, from Beijing, he faced skepticism from the committee members.
Several bills proposing a ban on the app are already floating in Congress, and the Biden administration has warned that the app could be banned if its Chinese owners do not divest their stake in the company.
Concerns over minors’ use of the app were also raised during the hearing.
