Boris Johnson risks major row with Donald Trump after allowing controversial Chinese app TikTok a London HQ
BORIS Johnson risks a major row with Donald Trump after allowing TikTok a London HQ.
Ministers have approved the investment, due to be revealed next week, from the owners of the controversial Chinese app.
The White House claims TikTok’s owners collude with the communist state and have threatened to kick the social media giant out of the US.
The firm is under scrutiny over its Chinese roots, with critics saying there is a risk users’ personal data will be accessed.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the Trump administration was “looking at” banning the social media app unless it cuts ties with Beijing.
TikTok, owned by Chinese firm ByteDance, insists China has no access to any of its users’ personal information.
ByteDance’s founders are to announce their intention to set up shop in London.
Ministers say it would be “absurd” to say no to such a large company wanting to come to Britain.
One told The Sun: “this isn’t like Huawei where there are national security concerns.”
Most read in Politics
The firm declined to comment but a deal, possibly even unveiled tomorrow, could see ByteDance’s founder Zhang Yiming and TikTok’s creator Alex Zhu relocating to London.
The move also comes amid speculation ByteDance may sell the popular app to Microsoft.
TikTok, after Friday’s US ban threat, insisted: “We’re not going anywhere.”
TIKTOK: A BRIEF GUIDE TO THE WORLD'S MOST DOWNLOADED APP
TikTok lets users create and share short videos with music and camera effects.
It is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, founded by the entrepreneur Zhang Yiming.
The $75 billion conglomerate acquired the Musical.ly app in 2017 and merged it with TikTok, bringing millions of new users.
It is the world’s most downloaded iPhone app – with nearly 800 million downloads across the globe, according to data from mobile research firm Sensor Tower.
Facebook has taken notice of TikTok's rising popularity, and launched a competitor app called Lasso in November last year.
GOT a story? RING The Sun on 0207 782 4104 or WHATSAPP on 07423720250 or EMAIL exclusive@the-sun.co.uk