Information Security, News

Report: TikTok to Double Staff as other Tech Firms Cut Jobs

As other tech companies cut jobs to remain competitive with TikTok, the social media giant is aiming to double its workforce.

Catherine Pyle

Contributing Writer

TNCR Brief

TikTok’s rapid growth in revenue and popularity is behind its plans to double its workforce.

The announcement comes as FBI director Christopher Wray tells lawmakers in Washington, D.C. that TikTok’s ties to China pose a national security threat.

Following recent job cuts at Meta, Twitter, and Amazon, the social media giant TikTok is seeking to double its workforce to 2,000 employees over the next few months. The report comes days after FBI director Christopher Wray warned House lawmakers that TikTok was a national security risk.

Following the cuts to Twitter’s workforce earlier this month, TikTok recruiters reached out to engineers who had left Twitter about joining TikTok, according to The Information, which broke the story this week. TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, has grown rapidly over the past two years, reaching $10 billion in revenue this year, up from $1 billion in 2020.

Part of the short-form video platform’s new hire initiative is focused on satisfying U.S. national security concerns. The Information reports that TikTok pledged to hire more U.S.-based engineers to skirt a possible ban by the U.S. government and ease concerns about the platform’s ties to China.