TikTok is banning deepfakes amid increasing pressure from the U.S. government over privacy and security concerns. CEO Shou Zi Chew announced the policy in a TikTok video on Tuesday two days ahead of his scheduled appearance before congress.
In the video, Chew stressed the stakes of a potential government ban on Tiktok — an idea floated by U.S. lawmakers in recent months. “Some politicians have started talking about banning TikTok," he said. "Now this could take TikTok away from all 150 million of you."
He also highlighted TikTok's updated rules and standards, which includes explicit restrictions on deepfakes (any synthetic media produced by artificially intelligent technology). Manipulated content that shows realistic scenes must now be properly labeled as fake.
“These principles are based on our commitment to uphold human rights and aligned with international legal frameworks,” said Julie de Bailliencourt, TikTok’s global head of product policy.
Character design studio Superplastic recently raised $20 million in a Series A round. Paul Budnitz, founder and CEO of Superplastic, joined Cheddar News to discuss the financing and a new collaboration with Amazon to develop a new series.
A Republican-led House panel voted to advance a bill that would give President Joe Biden the power to ban TikTok. Chris Pierson, the founder and CEO of BlackCloak, joined Cheddar News to discuss how the process could affect other businesses.
