TikTok’s CEO Kevin Mayer quits after three months

Mr Mayer joined the company in May after spending nearly 15 years at Disney

Kevin Mayer, TikTok’s outgoing chief executive. His appointment in May was seen as a move to boost the app's American credentials. AFP

TikTok's chief executive Kevin Mayer quit weeks after US President Donald Trump revealed his plans to ban the social media app within the US, according to a media report.

Mr Mayer told employees of his decision to leave on Thursday, the Financial Times newspaper reported.

“In recent weeks, as the political environment has sharply changed, I have done significant reflection on what the corporate structural changes will require and what it means for the global role I signed up for,” Mr Mayer said in a letter to TikTok’s employees.

“Against this backdrop and as we expect to reach a resolution very soon, it is with a heavy heart that I wanted to let you all know that I have decided to leave the company,” he added.

Vanessa Pappas, currently general manager of TikTok for North America, Australia and New Zealand, will become interim chief executive of the company, according to the memo.

The development comes after TikTok this week sued the US administration over an executive order passed on August 6 that bans transactions in the US.

"We do not take suing the government lightly … but with the executive order threatening to bring a ban on our US operations, we simply have no choice,” TikTok said.

TikTok was launched in China in 2016 and released in the US in 2018 after its parent company ByteDance acquired lip-syncing app Musical.ly.

The platform allows users to share video clips of up to 15 seconds and is popular with young audiences around the world. It has more than one billion users in 140 countries, including 100 million in the US.

Mr Mayer, who was also the chief operating officer of ByteDance, joined the Chinese firm in May after spending nearly 15 years at The Walt Disney Company.

At that time, it was seen as a move to boost the app's American credentials and improve its standing with the US government and regulators.

In a brief statement to The National, TikTok thanked Mr Mayer for his time with the company.

“We appreciate that the political dynamics of the last few months have significantly changed what the scope of Kevin’s role would be going forward, and fully respect his decision," the company said.

“We thank him for his time at the company and wish him well.”

TikTok started actively looking for a buyer for its US operations after Mr Trump issued an executive order banning businesses and US residents from transacting with the app. Companies including Microsoft, Oracle and Twitter are reportedly in the race to buy app’s US operations.

Google’s parent company Alphabet briefly mulled taking a stake in TikTok but the search engine giant’s chief executive Sundar Pichai said the company has no plans to acquire the app.

In another executive order passed on August 14, the Trump administration directed ByteDance to sell its US assets within 90 days.

“There is credible evidence that leads me to believe that ByteDance … might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the US," Mr Trump said in the order.

The executive order directed ByteDance to sell all its interests and rights in any assets or property used to enable or support TikTok in the US.

“I understand that the role that I signed up for – including running TikTok globally – will look very different as a result of the US administration's action to push for a sell-off of the US business,” Mr Mayer said.

According to a media report, private tech investor SoftBank is also considering buying TikTok’s US operations.

So far, Microsoft – the second-most valuable tech firm in the world – is the only company that has confirmed it is in discussions with TikTok to buy its business in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The potential deal could reportedly fetch up to $30 billion (Dh36.7bn).