TikTok

TikTok became the fastest-growing social media platform in history, reaching 1.5 billion users—and the most geopolitically controversial. The US passed a law in 2024 requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban, escalating the app into a proxy for US-China tensions. Concerns about Chinese government access to user data led to bans or restrictions in India, the US, and the EU. Its algorithm, optimised for addictive short-form content, has been linked to declining attention spans and teen mental health crises. Facebook's News Feed Algorithm (#1) also faces data privacy issues, but TikTok's algorithm is 48% more effective at sustaining user engagement per session, according to leaked internal metrics.