TikTok has returned to normal operations in the US following outages linked to a winter storm that knocked out an Oracle data center. The disruptions began on January 26, affecting users with bugs and display errors, amid recent changes in the app's ownership. The company apologized to its community for the inconvenience.
TikTok experienced significant technical issues in the US starting on January 26, 2026, when the platform announced it was addressing a "major infrastructure issue." Users encountered bugs, server timeouts, and display errors, including videos showing '0' views or likes and apparent missing earnings. The company clarified on January 27 that these were temporary glitches and assured creators that their actual data and engagement remained safe.
The outages stemmed from a winter storm that caused a power failure at one of TikTok's primary US data centers, operated by Oracle. This incident occurred less than a week after Oracle, along with investors Silver Lake and MGX, took ownership of TikTok's domestic operations.
By February 1, TikTok reported that the problems had been resolved, stating, "We're sorry about the issues experienced by our U.S. community. We appreciate how much you count on TikTok to create, discover, and connect with what matters to you." The platform thanked users for their patience and confirmed no further related disruptions.
The technical woes coincided with backlash over the ownership change. Analytics firm Sensor Tower reported to CNBC that app uninstalls surged by over 150 percent in the five days following the transition, compared to the prior three months. Some users alleged censorship, particularly around content related to ICE agents and the killing of Alex Pretti, as noted by The Guardian. Meanwhile, competitor UpScrolled saw increased downloads during this period.
