ByteDance reshuffles, education unit adapts to new rules

Zhāng Yīmíng 张一鸣, the founding CEO of TikTok owner ByteDance, stepped down earlier this week. Accompanying his departure from the board was the biggest restructuring in the company’s history, per LatePost.

• The tech giant has split into six units: TikTok, its Chinese sister Douyin, video game publisher Nuverse, work communication tool Lark, BytePlus (B2B, AI, data), and education app Dali Education.

Why it matters: The reshuffle might be interpreted as an austerity measure amid growing pressures from Beijing and greater scrutiny around TikTok’s data sharing in the U.S.

• Dali Education is one to watch: Once the darling new unit of ByteDance, it is now in peril. The unit has been subdivided into four segments that give us a sense of how private education in China is moving in response to politics.
• Its subunits include smart learning (AI-interactive recorded courses rather than live classes), vocational education, education hardware (e.g. smart lamps and tablets), and campus cooperation (technical assistance to public schools).

Also relevant: The TikTok unit faced tough questions at its first Congressional hearing last week. Senator Ted Cruz pressed the firm to address whether ByteDance is “part of” TikTok’s “corporate group,” which TikTok states it may share information with. The answer is “yes.”