Zhang Yiming, founder of TikTok owner ByteDance, gears up for the global stage

Zhang Yiming, founder and global CEO of ByteDance, in Palo Alto, California, United States, March 4. ByteDance's TikTok app has taken the social media world by storm, especially in the United States. — Reuters

BEIJING/HONG KONG: The founder of China's ByteDance, owner of the wildly successful TikTok app, has for years aspired to make ByteDance the first Chinese firm to rival US Internet giants on the global stage. On March 12 Zhang Yiming made a key move to achieve that.

Creating new leadership positions for ByteDance's China business, Zhang said in a letter to employees he would now focus on global expansion and fresh initiatives such as education.