TikTok
Acquired
Intro
This chapter explores ByteDance's meteoric ascent to become a leading tech startup, with a particular focus on TikTok's influence on social media and music careers. The discussion highlights the technological innovations that contribute to the app's success, especially its machine learning features.
We take Acquired to the Old Town Road to cover the amazing story behind the biggest global sensation of 2019 — and the highest valued private startup in the world — TikTok. How did a mid-30 year old UX architect at enterprise software giant SAP wind up creating Gen Z’s favorite social app that’s now rivaling Instagram in global MAU? Why is a 2017 merger of two Chinese companies being branded a US national security threat and retroactively placed under review by CFIUS? And perhaps most importantly, why is TikTok such an important product & technology innovation that all of us should be learning from? Tune in for all the answers!
Sponsors:
WorkOS: https://bit.ly/workos25
Sentry: https://bit.ly/acquiredsentry
ServiceNow: https://bit.ly/acquiredsn
More Acquired!:
- Get email updates with hints on next episode and follow-ups from recent episodes
- Join the Slack
- Subscribe to ACQ2
- Merch Store!
© Copyright 2015-2025 ACQ, LLC
Carve Outs:
- Ben: Track 34 on Ghosts IV by Nine Inch Nails: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF_ceFugJjQ
- David: Nintendo Switch Lite https://www.nintendo.com/switch/lite/ and Knives Out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGqiHJTsRkQ
Sources:
- https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/18/technology/tiktok-alex-zhu-interview.html
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bytedance-tiktok-exclusive/exclusive-chinas-bytedance-moves-to-ringfence-its-tiktok-app-amid-u-s-probe-sources-idUSKBN1Y10OH
- https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/10/10/arts/TIK-TOK.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
- https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/19/style/high-school-tiktok-clubs.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
- https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/technology/tiktok-facebook-youtube.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
- https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/02/business/china-toutiao-censorship.html
- https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/17/business/media/a-social-network-frequented-by-children-tests-the-limits-of-online-regulation.html
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTyg2E44pBA
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/keepsilence/
- https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/12/10/18129126/tiktok-app-musically-meme-cringe
- https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2018/1/26/16937712/karma-is-a-bitch-riverdale-kreayshawn-meme
- https://www.theverge.com/2018/8/2/17644260/musically-rebrand-tiktok-bytedance-douyin
- https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/tiktok-video-app-growth-867587/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical.ly
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ByteDance
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TikTok
- https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-musically-2016-5
- https://supchina.com/2017/09/13/can-pop-music-connect-teens-china-world-musical-ly-co-founder-louis-yang-wants-find/
- https://supchina.com/podcast/ep-28-the-worlds-most-valuable-startup-bytedance-maker-of-tiktok-toutiao/
- https://supchina.com/podcast/ep-55-kuaishou-the-anti-douyin-tiktok/
- https://supchina.com/podcast/ep-56-not-just-tiktok-a-short-history-of-chinese-short-video-abroad/
- https://supchina.com/2019/09/25/the-difference-between-tiktok-and-douyin/
- https://pandaily.com/toutiaos-buy-1b-purchase-musical-ly/
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-internet-livestreaming-idUSKBN17E0EV
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTyg2E44pBA
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey15v81pwII
- https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3038639/alex-zhus-journey-failed-startup-tiktok-chief
- https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/zuckerberg-musically-tiktok-china-facebook
- https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/12/instagram-reels/
- https://www.techinasia.com/douyin-rise-in-china
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptKqFafZgCk
- https://technode.com/2017/05/17/kwai-kuaishou-chinas-biggest-social-video-sharing-app/
- https://techno...
The AI-powered Podcast Player
