In 2020, the video-sharing platform was ranked No. 7 while Google came in at No. 1. This year, TikTok came in first, followed by Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Apple, in that order. Cloudflare's 2020 and 2021 rankings don't offer a perfect comparison; Cloudflare Radar, which compiles this information, only launched in September of 2020, so last year's rankings accounted for just a few months.
Regardless, Google is well aware of TikTok's dominance. The site has been looking to become increasingly focused on video and audio as the internet moves away from content people can read and toward content people can see or hear. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram and podcasts have largely led that shift.
TikTok's popularity also shows just how much people trust it. Google has long been a go-to for fact-checking information, but people may be increasingly willing to take people's word on TikTok without conducting any outside verification. The platform has added some measures to stop the spread of potentially misleading content, like adding banners on unverified TikToks and fact-checking content that users flag.
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE