In its infancy, TikTok was usually described as a teenage dance video app. In 2025 it’s a behemoth with 170 million customers in the USA and, in accordance with the Division of Justice, a menace to nationwide safety that have to be eradicated.
The platform’s path from whimsical dance app to the goal of a federal ban has been strewn recipesarea of interest drama, micro trendsnew entries in folk vocabulary and overnight megastars — in addition to authorized points, Senate hearings, and at last, extensively seen Case in the Supreme Court.
Here is a timeline of the app’s meteoric rise and a reminder of the movies that dominated your algorithm whether or not you needed it to or not.
2012
Zhang Yiming, a Chinese language entrepreneur, based ByteDance. he it is reported sketched the tough idea of what would turn out to be TikTok on the again of a serviette.
2014
July
Alex Zhu and Luyu Yang startup Musical.ly. The co-founders turned the platform from an academic app right into a lip sync app that enables customers to make 15-second movies singing alongside to fashionable songs.
2015
July
Musical.ly takes first place within the Apple App Retailer in the USA.
2016
September
ByteDance launches Dwina brief kind video app in China. It grew to become the preferred app of its variety within the nation and a precursor to TikTok. Douyin can solely be utilized in China, and the authorities there use the app to unfold propaganda.
October
A number of “musers” — shorthand for Musical.ly customers — seem on Billboard coverwhich states that the app is “altering the music business”. A lot of the cowl stars are kids.
2017
September
ByteDance launches TikTok in Indonesia.
November
ByteDance buy Musical.lyand its 60 million customers in the USA and Europe, for about $1 billion.
2018
August
Musical.ly it’s sunset because the app is merged with TikTok. Customers in the USA are routinely transferred to the brand new app.
November
TikTok surpasses Fb, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube in month-to-month downloads for the primary time.
2019
February
TikTok agrees to pay $5.7 million to settle kids’s privateness claims.
July
Lil Nas X’s “Outdated City Highway” is turning into an inescapable earworm due to TikTok. Eeeeeah!
December
The USA Division of Protection is warning army personnel to take away TikTok from each their service and private gadgets. Quickly after, the Marine Corps started blocking the app on government-issued devices.
Hype Househouse to lots of TikTok’s largest stars is taking form. It and different so-called co-working homes are locations the place TikTokers movie content material and help one another’s skilled careers as creators.
2020
February
The A renegadearguably TikTok’s most well-known dance, turns into an allegory when customers on the app movie themselves performing the choreography with out credit score Jalaya Harmonthe Atlanta teenager who created the actions.
March
Curtis Roach’s “Bored in the home and I am in the home bored” turns into an anthem for individuals at house throughout pandemic lockdowns, when many more users joined the app. Tyga produces it in single.
Russian breakfast cereal jingle – feels like “mi pan su su sum” – becomes a favorite app.
September
The Trump administration announces will ban a number of Chinese language-owned cell apps, together with TikTok. Later within the month, a federal decide issues an order towards the ban.
Nathan Apodaca’s inputs customers with a video of him skateboarding to a Fleetwood Mac tune and sipping Ocean Spray Cran-Raspberry juice. The model later gifted him a brand new truck and the tune “Dreams,” shot again up the charts.
November
Charlie D’Amelioa teenage lady greatest recognized for filming dance movies in her bed room turns into the app’s most adopted consumer with 100 million followers.
December
Musical theater children and adults create a community-written TikTok musical primarily based on the Disney Pixar animated movie “Ratatouille.”
A low-key video of a consumer named Bella Poarch rhythmically bobbing her head to “M to the B” has been topped the the most viewed TikTok of the yr at half a billion views.
June
Habi Lamea Senegalese-Italian creator, turns into probably the most adopted creator on TikTok by reacting to nonsensical life hacks.
A wannabe The “Saturday Night time Stay” solid member will get baked.
July
Younger individuals gown like “gentlemen” in full costume to attend the premiere of “Minions: The Rise of Gru.”
A brightly coloured spice often called Pink sauce puzzles, amuses and disgusts.
September
An elementary faculty pupil from Brooklyn professes an adoration for his favourite meals: “It’s corn!“
The Meals and Drug Administration, not mastering the irony of TikTok, issues a completely serious warning vs. cooking rooster in NyQuil.
There are extra younger individuals using TikTok as a search engineconcentrating on the platform earlier than Google Search.
October
For negronis. flawed With prosecco. Stunning.
The Biden administration signals he needs Congress to take extra motion towards TikTok.
June
The Grimace milkshakea purple McDonald’s promotional drink, conjures up a grotesque but comedic style of movies.
July
In the course of the Hollywood strike, SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, tells influencers that crossing the picket line will make them ineligible for possible union membership.
Ladies dinner attracts snack fans but it surely additionally prompts conversations about poor vitamin.
Sure, sure, sure. Ice cream, it is superb! PinkyDoll conjures up copycats around the globe to behave like online game characters for hours on finish. She stated she makes between $2,000 and $3,000 per stream.
December
Cecilia of SvalbardThe Arctic Archipelago, is certainly one of many artists who present distant locations that we’d in any other case not have the ability to see.
Bows on everything. Actually the whole lot.
2024
January
Millennials admit to TikTok that they do not know what to put on within the post-pandemic period. Gen Z has thoughts.
December
Shoppers come to Luigi Mangione protection after being accused of murdering a medical health insurance government.
2025
January
Unhealthy Bunny’sthe most Puerto Rican album ever” strikes a chord with grandparents.
Legal professionals for TikTok and its creators argued to the Supreme Court docket that banning the platform would violate the First Modification.
As the way forward for TikTok turns into unsure, some download Red Notea video sharing app developed in China.
Hank Sanders contributed reporting.
