Donald Trump once tried to ban TikTok. Now can he save it?
To keep the app alive in America, he must persuade China to sell up
The long campaign to outlaw TikTok in America succeeded at last when the Chinese-owned video app was forced to shut down on January 18th. But the blackout lasted only a matter of hours. The next day TikTok sprang back to life for its 170m American users, issuing a message thanking an unlikely ally: Donald Trump.
Explore more
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Art of the deal, Chinese edition”
Business January 25th 2025
- OpenAI’s latest model will change the economics of software
- A $500bn investment plan says a lot about Trump’s AI priorities
- Donald Trump once tried to ban TikTok. Now can he save it?
- Germans are world champions of calling in sick
- Knowing what your colleagues earn
- Donald Trump’s America will not become a tech oligarchy
From the January 25th 2025 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Business
Germans are world champions of calling in sick
It’s easy and it pays well
Knowing what your colleagues earn
The pros and cons of greater pay transparency
A $500bn investment plan says a lot about Trump’s AI priorities
It’s build, baby, build
Donald Trump’s America will not become a tech oligarchy
Reasons not to panic about the tech-industrial complex
OpenAI’s latest model will change the economics of software
The more reasoning it does, the more computer power it uses
The UFC, Dana White and the rise of bloodsport entertainment
There is more to the mixed-martial-arts impresario than his friendship with Donald Trump