What Billionaire Frank McCourt Would Actually Do With TikTok

People don’t know what they don’t have until you sell it to them, right? I’m pretty sure that when people see TikTok version 2.0 coming out, where they curate their own algorithm, where they’re responsible, they own themselves, parse their data and get value out of it, people are going to cry out. They will rush to do it. This is a better model.

We could argue about this all day long, but we’ll take the risk. We’re the ones who put the money in and said this is going to work. Bitbeat can shut it down, or they can get funding for the platform and wish us luck.

Currently, TikTok is associated with specific types of content, such as dance, silly videos, and younger audiences. Do you plan for the new version of TikTok to maintain this focus?

Well, I think the Gen Z user base is critical to staying engaged because young people create the culture. TikTok is a culture creator if ever there was one. But I do want to add that recent surveys show 47% of Gen Zeven though they use it for hours every day, they wish it had never been invented. Because of the highly addictive nature and how they sometimes feel after spending so much time on it. So let’s create a healthier version that’s a super polished app that’s easy to use and looks very similar to what it looks like now. But the user is responsible.

Do you think giving teenagers complete control without manipulative algorithms will help them reduce screen time?

I think once you give control to individuals, people will make their own choices. Some people will make good choices and some people will make bad choices. What’s really important, however, is that parents need to have some ability to be parents when you’re talking about very young people. Young people need guidance. They need to be nurtured, it’s hard for parents to compete these days [with the algorithm].

So we need to take a step back. TikTok is awesome. We want to keep it alive. Let’s build a better version. But you know what: healthy teenagers are great, too. Being a good parent is also great. Individual human rights and protecting them are also great. It’s also great to protect American citizens.

If TikTok’s Supreme Court appeal takes some time, will you still want to buy the app, even months or years later?

Yeah, every time that happens, we line up to do it. To me, the biggest opportunity is the implementation of this legislation, where TikTok could be up for grabs. Because moving 170 million people to the new stack will quickly facilitate this alternative network upgrade. One of the big problems we have at the moment is that we debate things about the internet, but until there’s an alternative, people are kind of stuck.

I compare this to large-scale physical migration of humans. Some people live in very difficult places—in the case of my ancestors, there was famine—and they really want to be somewhere else. But there is a second condition, which is that you need a place to go. People are now becoming more aware of the dangers of today’s networks and the fact that they are being taken advantage of without being properly or fairly rewarded. But unless there are other options and places for them to go, nothing will happen.