TikTok's newly formed US entity is grappling with widespread technical glitches following a data center power outage, leading to a sharp increase in app uninstalls. Frustrated users are turning to an independent competitor, UpScrolled, which has seen downloads skyrocket. The issues coincide with the app's ownership transition to majority-US investors.
TikTok's American operations hit snags almost immediately after formalizing a US joint venture on Thursday, January 22, 2026. A power outage at a US data center, starting early Sunday, January 25, triggered cascading failures affecting the recommendation algorithm, view counts, load times, and content posting. The TikTok USDS Joint Venture acknowledged the problem on X, stating, “Since yesterday we’ve been working to restore our services following a power outage at a US data center impacting TikTok and other apps we operate.” By Monday evening, January 26, issues persisted, with users reporting bugs, slower loads, timed-out requests, login problems, and generic content flooding feeds. The company assured creators that “your actual data and engagement are safe,” addressing concerns over zero views and missing earnings.
Analytics from Sensor Tower indicate a 150 percent rise in US uninstalls compared to the previous three months, though daily active users grew by about 2 percent overall and remained flat week-over-week. TikTok blamed the outage for “multiple bugs,” but has not specified a resolution timeline.
Amid the turmoil, independent app UpScrolled experienced a boom. Released in June 2025, it averaged under 500 daily downloads before Thursday but gained 41,000 between then and Saturday, per App Figures estimates. Total downloads now stand at around 140,000 across app stores. Ranking ninth overall and second in social apps on the US App Store, it also hit the top five in the UK and Australia. Created by Australian developer Issam Hijazi and privately funded, UpScrolled features photo and short-video sharing with a default chronological feed and no current ads. The company tweeted on January 26: “You showed up so fast our servers tapped out... We're a tiny team building what Big Tech stopped being.”
The outages have fueled conspiracy theories, with some users alleging intentional censorship of videos criticizing ICE raids in Minnesota, especially under new right-wing owners selected by Donald Trump. A new privacy policy requires consent for collecting precise location data and AI interaction metadata, raising privacy concerns. Past precedents, like RedNote's brief surge during a 2025 TikTok 'ban' that lasted hours, suggest such shifts may be temporary, but ongoing issues could reshape the short-form video landscape.
