Why it matters: TikTok’s vast pool of users, fine-tuned content algorithm and accelerating cash machine have made it the upstart that most spooks Facebook, which started copycatting TikTok’s format in 2020. Yes, but: Tiktok’s arrival as a competitive challenger to tech’s incumbent giants comes with a colossal asterisk — it’s owned by a private Chinese company, ByteDance. There was a time when TikTok could look forward to a future as a spun-off, independent outfit with a lucrative IPO and an independent, publicly traded status from which to compete in the U.S. with Facebook, YouTube and other rivals. - The Trump...