TikTok: News
TikTok is an extremely popular video-sharing social networking service headquartered in China. Owned by a Beijing-based internet technology company named ByteDance, the app was founded in 2016 with a mission “to inspire creativity and bring joy.” In 2018, it merged with Shanghai-based social media service, musical.ly, and became available globally. Apart from Beijing, TikTok has offices in Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo. TikTok allows one to make music and lip-sync videos lasting some 3 to 15 seconds, and short looping videos of 3 to 60 seconds. The platform is regularly in the news for new features, some of which are new and some of which are imitations of features already implemented by other mainstream social media platforms. In early August of 2021, TikTok confirmed that it is testing a new Stories feature with a small subset of users. The feature is reminiscent of Instagram’s Stories feature which has been around for far longer.
Indonesia: 6 publicly flogged in Aceh for Sharia law violations
In Indonesia's Aceh province, six individuals were publicly flogged on Thursday for violating strict Sharia laws.
Meta fined $597,000 by UK regulator over WhatsApp Business data
Britain's media regulator, Ofcom, has fined Meta £450,000 ($596,565) for providing false information about its WhatsApp Business service.
TikTok accused of promoting adult industry to young girls
TikTok has been accused of normalizing the sex industry by allowing "sexfluencers" to promote pornographic content on its platform.
TikTok launches standalone shopping app
TikTok has quietly launched a standalone app for its e-commerce platform, TikTok Shop.
Meta, Google challenge California law restricting social media for teens
Meta, Google, and TikTok have sued California Attorney General Rob Bonta over a new law that limits social media features for users under 16.
Meta settles teen lawsuit alleging Instagram caused mental health issues
Meta Platforms has settled a lawsuit with an 18-year-old from Mississippi who accused the company of designing Instagram and Facebook to be addictive.
Instagram is paying creators up to $500,000 for long-form videos
Instagram is shelling out huge amounts of money to content creators, in a bid to get them to post long-form videos on its platform.
Meta, Snap face another trial over youth safety
Meta and Snap are set to go on trial in Los Angeles over the alleged harms of social media on young users.
ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming is China's richest person again
Zhang Yiming, the founder of ByteDance, has reclaimed the top spot on China's rich list.
TikTok knew about sexual exploitation risks to minors: Report
Internal court documents have revealed that TikTok employees had raised alarms over the potential risks of sexual exploitation and suicide content on the platform, as per NPR.
Anthropic might announce another $45B compute deal with Nscale
Anthropic and AI infrastructure provider Nscale are in talks for a second $45 billion compute deal.
TikTok restores ad account for 'Musk' documentary after brief suspension
TikTok has restored the promotional account of the documentary Musk, after informing its distributor about the "permanent suspension" on Friday.
Why Apple's HomeView is raising concerns among recipe writers
Apple's latest smart display, HomeView, is making waves with its unique ad campaign.
TikTok bans advertising account for 'Musk' documentary
Ahead of the wider release of Alex Gibney's highly anticipated documentary on Elon Musk, TikTok took a controversial decision to ban the film's social media account.
AI to bring scientific breakthroughs in 2-3 years: TikTok CEO
Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, has predicted that artificial intelligence (AI) will lead to significant scientific breakthroughs within the next three years.
Meta bans TikTok ads across multiple countries, including US
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has banned ads from TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance across the US and other countries, Bloomberg reported.
Pakistan introduces new tax rules for social media creators
Pakistan's Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced a new framework to tax social media content creators.
TikTok accused of secretly testing algorithms on teens
New York Attorney General Letitia James has leveled new allegations against TikTok Inc. in a child safety lawsuit.
Florida asks Meta to remove under-14 users, limit teen use
Florida has filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, demanding enhanced protections for young users on its social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram.
You will now see reels first on opening Facebook app
Facebook is testing a new user experience (UX) in India.
TikTok brings AI shopping straight to your feed
TikTok has announced the launch of an artificial intelligence (AI) shopping assistant and a new in-app checkout feature.
Meta, YouTube will run ads for 'Musk' documentary after all
Meta and YouTube have now agreed to accept advertisements for director Alex Gibney's upcoming documentary on Elon Musk, reversing their earlier decisions to reject the campaign.
Why TikTok has agreed to pay $100M to Alabama
TikTok has settled a lawsuit with the state of Alabama, agreeing to pay at least $100 million and impose restrictions on teenage users.
'Sad...': Zara Larsson lambasts White House for using her song
Swedish pop sensation Zara Larsson has slammed the White House for using her song Midnight Sun in a social media post.
TikTok founder becomes Asia's richest, overtaking Gautam Adani
Zhang Yiming, the founder of ByteDance, has surpassed Indian billionaire Gautam Adani to become Asia's richest person.
You can soon watch news clips on Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video is taking a step into the world of short-form content by introducing on-demand news clips.
White House calls Truth Social world's top platform, data disagrees
The White House has declared Truth Social, the social media platform owned by Donald Trump, as the "most powerful and popular social media platform in the world."
TikTok introduces voice comments and polls in latest update
TikTok is giving its comment sections a major overhaul.
TikTok reverses decision to meet US lawmakers over child safety
TikTok has pulled out of a scheduled public roundtable with the House Select Committee on China, according to John Moolenaar, the chair of the committee.
ByteDance secures $30B loan amid AI spending push
ByteDance, the Chinese tech giant behind TikTok, has bagged a massive $29.6 billion loan. The move marks Asia's second-largest dollar-denominated borrowing this year.
ChatGPT now subject to strictest digital safety rules in EU
The European Union (EU) has added ChatGPT to its list of digital services subject to stricter legal scrutiny.
Bluesky now allows videos up to 10 minutes long
Bluesky, the popular social media platform, has announced a major update in its video upload feature.
How Meta is changing Instagram and Facebook for teens
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has agreed to implement major changes for its platforms in the US.
Meta agrees to $18B settlement over child safety
Meta has agreed to pay $18 billion in a settlement with 29 US states over claims that it endangered children on its platforms, particularly Instagram and Facebook.
Why TikTok parent ByteDance has been fined $30M in Brazil
Brazil's data protection authority has slapped a hefty fine of nearly $30 million on ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok.
Are Facebook, TikTok promoting recruitment content for armed groups?
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused social media giants Facebook and TikTok of failing to stop content from Colombian armed groups that recruits children.
YouTube's new view-counting system: What it means for creators
YouTube is changing its public view-counting system from August 24, 2026.
TikTok agrees to $400M settlement over child privacy lawsuit
TikTok and its parent company ByteDance have agreed to a $400 million settlement with the US Department of Justice (DOJ).
US senators demand explanation from TikTok for disabling safeguards
US Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal have demanded an explanation from TikTok over a controversial experiment that disabled a safety feature for 15 million American users.
TikTok might soon let you send money via DMs
TikTok is said to be working on a new feature that would let users send money to each other via direct messages.
TikTok star Shamso Bibi shot dead in Pakistan
Shamso Bibi, a popular Pakistani TikTok creator with 1.3 million followers, was shot dead in Taxila on August 14.
Facebook launches standalone Creator Studio app
Facebook has officially launched its standalone Creator Studio app, an AI-powered platform designed to help content creators grow their audiences and engage with communities.
Why Meta, Google, Snapchat are staring at thousands of lawsuits
A US appeals court has allowed thousands of lawsuits against social media giants Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snapchat to proceed.
Who was Sydney Towle? Influencer dies at 26
Sydney Towle, a popular TikTok creator known for her candid portrayal of life with Stage 4 cholangiocarcinoma, has passed away at the age of 26.
TikTok to lay off 250 employees, shut Nashville office
TikTok has announced the layoff of 250 employees and the closure of its Nashville office.
Disney gives TikTok creators access to Marvel, Star Wars
The Walt Disney Company has announced a partnership with TikTok, aimed at bringing an extensive collection of Disney-centric fan-created content to the Verts video feed on Disney+.
What happened to celebrity blogger Perez Hilton?
The Miami-Dade County Sheriff's Office recently responded to multiple calls about celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton (48) allegedly harming himself on a TikTok livestream.
EU mandates labels for AI-generated content and deepfakes
The European Union (EU) has implemented new rules aimed at improving transparency in artificial intelligence (AI).
Australia increases levy on Big Tech over local news deals
Australia has increased the rate of a planned levy on tech giants, including Meta, Google, and TikTok.
This key can help you stop mindless app scrolling
Autonomous Key, a new NFC key, is revolutionizing the way we deal with distracting apps.
You can soon watch, listen to viral Reddit posts
Reddit has announced a planned feature called "video Reddit," which will permit users to watch videos from the platform, and also listen to the posts in the background. Testing will begin later this year.
Noah Kahan slams Trump for unauthorized use of his song
Singer-songwriter Noah Kahan has slammed US President Donald Trump and his administration for using the song American Cars in a White House social media post.
EU to mandate AI content labeling
The European Union (EU) will start enforcing its new artificial intelligence (AI) transparency regulations from Sunday (August 2).
How AI-generated doctors are a threat to your health
AI-generated accounts on TikTok are gaining millions of views by spreading dubious health advice, a new study has found.