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TikTok Announces Formation Of US Majority-Owned Joint Venture To Prevent Ban Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times, TikTok said on Jan. 22 it has formed an American majority-owned joint venture that would oversee data security and the content ecosystem in a bid to maintain its operations in the United States. TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will operate as an independent entity overseen by a seven-member board of directors that includes TikTok CEO Shou Chew, Silver Lake co-CEO Egon Durban, Oracle executive vice president Kenneth Glueck, among others, according to a statement. “The majority American owned Joint Venture will operate under defined safeguards that protect national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users,” TikTok said in the statement. The joint venture will be led by CEO Adam Presser and Chief Security Officer Will Farrell and is backed by three managing investors—tech company Oracle, private equity firm Silver Lake, and United Arab Emirates investment company MGX—each with a 15 percent stake. ByteDance, the Beijing-based parent company of TikTok, retains a 19.9 percent stake, according to the statement. The new company is also backed by a consortium of investors that includes Dell Family Office, Vastmere Strategic Investments, Alpha Wave Partners, Revolution, Merritt Way, and Via Nova, among others. TikTok said the joint venture will implement data privacy and cybersecurity measures to secure U.S. user data, apps, and algorithms, and put in place safety policies and content moderation to safeguard the content ecosystem. The move complies with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on Sept. 25, 2025, and will enable continued access to the video-sharing app for more than 200 million U.S. users, the company said. TikTok had been required, under a law signed by President Joe Biden in 2024, to divest its U.S. assets or face a nationwide ban over national security concerns. Trump later delayed enforcement of that law after taking office for a second term in January 2025. On Sept. 25, 2025, Trump issued an executive order outlining a framework for TikTok to continue its operations in the United States through a joint venture that is majority-owned by Americans and governed by rules protecting Americans’ data and national security. Trump’s order requires U.S. user data to be stored in a cloud environment run by an American company. To address this, TikTok said in its statement that the USDS Joint Venture will use Oracle’s cloud to store the data. TikTok has faced scrutiny amid concerns that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could potentially access U.S. consumer data and the algorithm owned by ByteDance. U.S. officials have raised national security concerns about the app due to ByteDance’s alleged ties to the CCP, claims the company has denied. Tyler Durden Fri, 01/23/2026 - 11:25

Snow, sleet and freezing temperatures are forecast for the south, midwest and east coast over the weekendTrump says the big US winter storm is proof of climate hoax – here’s why he’s wrongThe dangerous monster storm threatening half of the US was bearing down on Friday with 13 states already declaring emergencies and areas typically unused to prolonged Arctic temperatures bracing for power failures and supply shortages.At least 230 million people are likely to be affected by the huge winter weather system as it forms in parts of the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains and surges across southern and midwestern areas from Friday, blowing up the east coast on Saturday and as far north as Maine by Sunday. Continue reading...

Winter Storm Threatens Appalachian NatGas With 'Freeze Offs' As Data Center Demand Tightens PJM Grid Submitted by Criterion Research President James Bevan, An incoming winter ice storm is poised to crimp Appalachian natural gas production at a critical moment when the power grid faces mounting pressure from surging data center demand and extreme cold. Appalachian volumes already plummeted 682/d to 34,745 MMcf/d as the ongoing cold snap hit supply. The region is down 2,189 MMcf/d versus recent two-week highs. Freeze-offs are already taking effect, with Pittsburgh projected to experience overnight lows near 0°F by January 27. Winter is Coming for Appalachia This week's Appalachian nat gas production is already down 1.1 Bcf/d versus last week, and the extreme cold is just getting started. Pittsburgh overnight lows are headed to -6.8°F at their most intense levels next week, with this cold coming in… pic.twitter.com/l2oyl80cfe — Criterion Research (@PipelineFlows) January 22, 2026 The Moisture Problem The critical difference between ice storms and snow is moisture. Freezing rain, sleet, and ice create wet conditions that prove far more problematic than dry snow. For the Northeast pipeline system, ice and sleet storms pose significantly higher risks to sustained gas production compared to snow events. Freezing liquid accumulation causes multiple failure modes: frozen dump valves block separators and pneumatic controls, ice accumulation damages exposed infrastructure and above-ground systems, rapid freezing exacerbates blockages and underground damage, and operational shutdowns from structural failures account for substantial cold-weather incidents. Internal freeze-offs—when ice freezes on valves and equipment—obstruct gas flow throughout the system. NOAA's latest forecast shows freezing rain concentrations from Texas to the Carolinas, with six-inch snowfall probabilities concentrated in Appalachia. Ice accumulation is expected across the region through January 26. Grid Stress Mounting Complicating the supply disruption is explosive demand-side growth from data centers, which have become one of the fastest-growing electricity consumers in the power sector. As AI computing facilities proliferate across the Northeast, winter power demand is spiking precisely when weather threatens production. Preliminary guidance suggests freeze-offs could drop production by 5-8 Bcf/d, with >10-15 Bcf/d possible if infrastructure sustains damage. PJM observed demand flows are already pointing higher on the Criterion Mapping Analytics Platform - and the cold is only starting to migrate in. This dual squeeze - compressed supply from weather events and surging electricity demand from data center buildout - is testing the grid's ability to maintain supply during extreme weather. The convergence represents a critical vulnerability: production-constrained Appalachia feeding a power system increasingly dependent on digital infrastructure, while winter extremes threaten both simultaneously. Tyler Durden Fri, 01/23/2026 - 11:05

Ryan Wedding allegedly ran a drug-trafficking organisation that moved 60 tons of cocaine a year into Los AngelesRyan Wedding, the Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin, has been arrested, US law enforcement officials announced on Friday.Wedding, 44, has been sought by the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) for his role in overseeing what the US attorney general, Pam Bondi, called the “one of the most prolific and violent drug-trafficking organizations” in the world. Continue reading...