Isaac Bess

Isaac Bess is the Global Head of Distribution Partnerships at TikTok, overseeing Business Development, Strategy, and Operations supporting Telecommunications, Infrastructure, Product, and Trust & Safety.1 He has been with TikTok/ByteDance for over five years, joining the company in July 2018.3

Prior to his current role, Bess held several positions at TikTok, including:

• Head of Mobile, New Screens & Product Partnerships (April 2020 - August 2022)
• Senior Director, Mobile Partnerships for Americas & Europe (July 2018 - April 2020)4

Before joining TikTok, Bess had a diverse career in the music and tech industries:

• Product Partnerships at YouTube (2011-2018)
• Senior Director of Global Business Development at IODA (2006-2011)
• General Manager at Quannum Projects (1999-2009)
• Director of International at Matador Records (1994-1997)4

Bess holds a BA from Cornell University and MBAs from UCLA and the National University of Singapore. He is based in Los Angeles, California.14

Recently, Bess has been involved in TikTok's music-related initiatives, such as the "Add to Music App" feature, which allows users to save songs discovered on TikTok to their preferred music streaming services.2 He also participated as a keynote speaker at TikTok's inaugural DevDay conference in October 2024, sharing insights on the platform's vision for the future.5