TikTok poached Amazon employees to jump-start its US business. Now it's doubling down on its Chinese roots.

Getty Images; Alyssa Powell/BI

• TikTok recruited heavily from Amazon to launch its US e-commerce business, Shop.
• It copied Amazon's playbook and hired former staffers to help woo sellers and craft its US strategy.
• After layoffs, reorgs, and exits, it's shifting power from US to Chinese leaders.

"Always day 1" is one of six core cultural principles at TikTok. The slogan, meant to inspire agility and urgency, might sound familiar. It was coined by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.