TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew plans to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, a day after a nationwide ban against the app that the president-elect has pledged to “save” it from is set to take effect, according to three people familiar with the plans.
Get concise answers to your questions. Try Ask The Post AI.
Chew’s planned attendance arrives at a pivotal moment for the company’s U.S. operations.
The popular video-sharing platform is barreling toward a possible shutdown in the United States on Sunday if its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, does not sell off the app and if neither the Supreme Court nor the Biden administration intervenes to halt a federal ban-or-sale law from taking effect.
While Trump previously advocated for a TikTok ban as president, he said on the campaign trail that he plans to rescue it from the bipartisan law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden last year, though how he aims to do so remains unclear.
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Trump is exploring issuing an executive order once he enters office to halt enforcement of the law for 60 or 90 days, a move that would give the app a temporary reprieve.
💻
Follow Technology
The company awaits judgment by the Supreme Court on its challenge to the ban-or-sale law, though a majority of the justices last week appeared inclined to uphold it. If the law is upheld or the court declines to delay its implementation, TikTok could shut down on Sunday.
The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that were not yet public.
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has praised TikTok in recent weeks, crediting the platform with helping him to court young voters during the presidential race last year. “I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok,” Trump said at a news conference last month.
Trump met with Chew at Mar-a-Lago last month as questions about the app’s fate swelled, according to a person familiar with the plans, who was not authorized to speak publicly.
Chew will join other prominent tech executives who are set to attend Trump’s inauguration, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Tesla chief Elon Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.) The New York Times first reported news of Chew’s plans.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are also expected to attend, according to two people familiar with their plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private deliberations.
The plans put TikTok chief in close proximity to the leaders of some companies tasked with imposing the ban. Under the ban-or-sale law, app store giants — including Google and Apple along with internet hosting services — could face billions in penalties if they continue to carry TikTok or push updates to the app.
Get concise answers to your questions. Try Ask The Post AI.Chew’s planned attendance arrives at a pivotal moment for the company’s U.S. operations.
The popular video-sharing platform is barreling toward a possible shutdown in the United States on Sunday if its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, does not sell off the app and if neither the Supreme Court nor the Biden administration intervenes to halt a federal ban-or-sale law from taking effect.
While Trump previously advocated for a TikTok ban as president, he said on the campaign trail that he plans to rescue it from the bipartisan law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden last year, though how he aims to do so remains unclear.
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Trump is exploring issuing an executive order once he enters office to halt enforcement of the law for 60 or 90 days, a move that would give the app a temporary reprieve.
💻
Follow Technology
The company awaits judgment by the Supreme Court on its challenge to the ban-or-sale law, though a majority of the justices last week appeared inclined to uphold it. If the law is upheld or the court declines to delay its implementation, TikTok could shut down on Sunday.
The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that were not yet public.
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has praised TikTok in recent weeks, crediting the platform with helping him to court young voters during the presidential race last year. “I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok,” Trump said at a news conference last month.
Trump met with Chew at Mar-a-Lago last month as questions about the app’s fate swelled, according to a person familiar with the plans, who was not authorized to speak publicly.
Chew will join other prominent tech executives who are set to attend Trump’s inauguration, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Tesla chief Elon Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.) The New York Times first reported news of Chew’s plans.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are also expected to attend, according to two people familiar with their plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private deliberations.
The plans put TikTok chief in close proximity to the leaders of some companies tasked with imposing the ban. Under the ban-or-sale law, app store giants — including Google and Apple along with internet hosting services — could face billions in penalties if they continue to carry TikTok or push updates to the app.
