Oracle has appointed two new chief executives to replace longtime CEO Safra Catz. This is coming at a time when the U.S. software giant Oracle Corp. has taken on a new role in securing and recreating TikTok’s recommendation algorithm with a White House-backed plan
The organisation appointed Mike Sicilia, the former head of Oracle Industries, and Clay Magouyrk, the former president of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), as its new co-CEOs.
In June, both executives were promoted to head their respective divisions.
Catz, who has been in charge of Oracle since 2014, was named the board’s executive vice chair. Larry Ellison, the founder and chair of Oracle, stated that he would continue to collaborate closely with her.
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“In her role as Vice Chair, Safra and I will be able to continue our 26-year partnership helping to guide Oracle’s direction, growth, and success,” Ellison said in a statement.
Before reversing gains, Oracle’s stock increased by less than one per cent in early trading. By mid-morning, it was up 2.37 per cent at $315.98.
Oracle to retrain TikTok’s algorithm
The White House confirmed that Oracle will be responsible for re-creating and safeguarding a new version of TikTok’s algorithm, simultaneously with the leadership change. After its Chinese parent company, ByteDance Ltd., agreed to sell off the U.S. operations, the agreement aims to guarantee U.S. ownership of the app’s recommendation software.
According to Bloomberg, the proposed arrangement calls for the owners of the U.S.-based TikTok to lease a copy of ByteDance’s current algorithm, which Oracle would subsequently retrain.
Addressing U.S. national security concerns, the plan aims to prevent the popular short-video platform, which has 170 million American users, from being banned.
Oracle has a long history with TikTok’s U.S. operations. It stored user data under a 2020 agreement that was a component of the Trump administration’s effort to restrict the app.
According to reports, expanding Oracle’s role in consumer-facing technologies through the new algorithm agreement could strengthen that role and increase its cloud business revenue.
Oracle’s interest in purchasing TikTok US
Oracle has joined a group of American investors that is anticipated to purchase TikTok’s U.S. assets, which also includes Silver Lake Management and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
It is believed that the company’s role in protecting the algorithm is essential to guaranteeing the deal’s approval by US regulators.
For one of the most well-known female executives in Silicon Valley, Catz’s resignation as CEO signifies the end of an era. As a former investment banker, she led Oracle through ten acquisitions and managed the company’s shift to cloud services, paving the way for the next phase of the business under shared leadership.