TikTok has appointed Ziad Ojakli, a former Boeing executive, as its US public policy chief to lead advocacy efforts in the region. The move, announced on November 25, 2025, expands his remit to oversee policy for the Americas at a moment of heightened regulatory pressure on the platform in the United States. The decision underscores TikTok’s push to localize operations as the concept of a more independent “TikTok USA” edges closer to reality.
Announcement of the Hiring
TikTok said it has named former Boeing executive Ziad Ojakli as its US public policy chief, with the appointment effective immediately following the November 25, 2025 disclosure. The company’s decision, detailed in coverage that described him as taking on a senior policy portfolio, places Ojakli at the center of TikTok’s response to intensifying scrutiny from lawmakers and regulators who are weighing new restrictions on the app’s operations in the United States. By elevating a single, high-profile figure into this role, TikTok is signaling that it wants a clearer, more accountable voice in Washington at a time when its future access to the US market is being actively debated.
Reports on the appointment emphasize that Ojakli’s responsibilities will not be confined to Washington, since his new job encompasses public policy leadership for the broader Americas region rather than just US operations. Coverage of the move, including an account that framed him as the new public policy chief for the Americas as “TikTok USA” nears potential realization, indicates that the company is aligning its advocacy structure with the geographic footprint of its user base and regulatory exposure. For policymakers, this shift means they will be dealing with a single, regionally focused executive who can speak to cross-border issues such as data flows, content standards, and enforcement practices that affect users from Canada to Latin America as well as in the United States.
Ziad Ojakli’s Professional Background
Before joining TikTok, Ziad Ojakli served as a key executive at Boeing, where he worked on high-level government relations and corporate policy, experience that is now central to his new mandate. Coverage of his appointment notes that TikTok has turned to a figure steeped in aerospace and regulatory affairs, a background that typically involves navigating complex oversight from agencies and legislatures in multiple jurisdictions. By recruiting someone who has already managed sensitive conversations around safety, national security, and industrial policy, TikTok is betting that Ojakli can translate those skills into the digital policy arena, where questions about data security and platform governance dominate the agenda.
Reports describing Ojakli as a former Boeing executive, including one account that highlights his prior role in government relations, underscore how his corporate leadership experience is expected to shape TikTok’s strategy in Washington and beyond. In that earlier capacity, he would have been accustomed to dealing with congressional committees, executive branch agencies, and international regulators, all of whom now play a role in TikTok’s regulatory environment. For stakeholders such as US lawmakers, state attorneys general, and civil society groups, his arrival introduces a counterpart who understands the mechanics of large-scale compliance and lobbying campaigns, which could change the tone and sophistication of TikTok’s engagement on issues like national security reviews and technology export controls.
TikTok’s Ongoing US Regulatory Landscape
The appointment comes as TikTok faces intensified scrutiny in the United States, with the timing clearly calibrated to counter potential bans or restrictions that remain on the table as of November 25, 2025. Coverage of the move, including detailed reporting that describes how the company is responding to mounting political pressure, situates Ojakli’s hiring within a broader campaign to reassure US officials that TikTok can operate safely under American law despite its Chinese ownership. For users, creators, and advertisers, the stakes are significant, since any decision by US authorities to limit or block the app could disrupt livelihoods built on TikTok’s short-form video ecosystem and shift advertising budgets to rivals such as Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.
Reports on the restructuring of TikTok’s policy operations explain that the hiring reflects changes from earlier policy team configurations, with the company now emphasizing localized US advocacy over a more diffuse global strategy. One account that details how TikTok is reshaping its public policy leadership notes that the new structure replaces prior arrangements and is intended to give US regulators a clearer line of communication into the company’s decision-making. That shift matters for national security officials and privacy advocates who have argued that TikTok’s previous governance model left too many questions unanswered about who ultimately controls data access and content moderation decisions affecting US users.
Implications for TikTok’s Americas Operations
Beyond Washington, the expanded scope of Ojakli’s role has direct implications for TikTok’s operations across the Americas, particularly as developments around “TikTok USA” move closer to creating more independent US-based structures. Reporting that describes him as policy head for the Americas, and that links his appointment to the broader “TikTok USA” project, suggests that the company is preparing for scenarios in which its US business may need to operate with greater separation from its global parent. For regulators in countries such as Mexico, Brazil, and Canada, a regionally focused policy chief could provide a more consistent counterpart on cross-border issues like data localization and cooperation with law enforcement.
Coverage of the appointment also highlights that Ojakli’s leadership is expected to influence policy on data privacy and content moderation across the Americas, not just in the United States. One report that details his new responsibilities explains that he will be responsible for shaping TikTok’s stance on regulatory proposals that touch on how user data is stored and how harmful or misleading content is handled, areas where lawmakers in multiple countries are considering new rules. For creators and brands that rely on TikTok’s reach in markets from Los Angeles to São Paulo, the way Ojakli balances regulatory demands with product flexibility will help determine whether the platform remains an attractive place to invest time and advertising budgets.
Strategic Shift Toward “TikTok USA”
Several accounts of the hiring explicitly connect Ojakli’s appointment to TikTok’s evolving strategy around a more localized “TikTok USA,” describing the project as edging “oh-so-close” to reality. One detailed report on the company’s policy overhaul explains that naming a public policy chief for the Americas is part of a broader effort to build out US-facing governance structures that could support a more independent operational model if required by regulators. For US officials who have pressed for structural remedies to address national security concerns, the emergence of a clearly defined regional leadership layer may be seen as a step toward the kind of separation they have been demanding.
Other coverage of the move, including reporting that focuses on how TikTok is reorganizing its advocacy teams, notes that Ojakli’s role effectively replaces earlier policy leadership structures and consolidates authority in a single executive. That consolidation is significant for stakeholders such as the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and congressional committees that have criticized what they saw as fragmented or opaque lines of responsibility within TikTok’s global organization. By putting a former Boeing executive with deep government relations experience in charge of policy for the Americas, TikTok is attempting to show that it can build a governance model that looks more like a traditional US multinational, which may influence how regulators assess the feasibility of a “TikTok USA” framework.
Stakeholder Reactions and Policy Outlook
Reports on the appointment, including coverage that frames it as a major step in TikTok’s policy strategy, indicate that the company is keenly aware of how closely US lawmakers and regulators are watching its next moves. One account that details the announcement notes that TikTok is facing active discussions about potential bans or forced divestitures, and that the company is responding by elevating figures like Ojakli who can engage directly with policymakers on the technical and legal details of proposed remedies. For members of Congress who have raised concerns about data access by foreign governments, the presence of a seasoned corporate policy chief may provide a more structured channel for negotiating safeguards, though it does not resolve the underlying ownership questions on its own.
Additional reporting that highlights Ojakli’s previous work in government relations suggests that TikTok expects him to play a central role in shaping the policy outlook for the platform across the Americas in the coming months. His task will include addressing national security concerns tied to TikTok’s Chinese ownership, responding to legislative proposals on data privacy, and engaging with regulators over content moderation standards that affect everything from political speech to youth safety. For users, creators, and advertisers, the outcome of those policy debates will determine whether TikTok can maintain its current scale and functionality in the United States and neighboring markets, or whether new legal constraints will force changes to how the app operates and how data is handled behind the scenes.
