'warm Spot In My Heart': Tiktok's Ceo Was Spotted At Mar-a-lago With President-elect Donald Trump. Here's Why.

On Monday, TikTok and its genitor company, China-based ByteDance, asked nan U.S. Supreme Court to region nan upcoming Jan. 19 deadline imposed by U.S. lawmakers successful April that forces nan 2 companies to sever relations aliases look a ban.

Hours later, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was astatine Mar-a-Lago successful Palm Beach, Florida, making his suit to President-elect Donald Trump astatine nan "Winter White House," CNN first reported.

Related: The TikTok Ban Bill Has Been Signed — Here's How Long ByteDance Has to Sell, and Why TikTok Is Preparing for a Legal Battle

The outlet notes that nan gathering was pre-scheduled. ByteDance said antecedently that it won't discarded TikTok.

Earlier successful nan day, Trump said astatine a spot normal that he is taking "a look astatine TikTok" and has a "warm spot" successful his bosom for nan app. Under nan authorities passed successful nan Spring, nan President of nan U.S. tin telephone for a "one-time extension" of nan deadline.

Trump's words Monday are a departure from 2020 erstwhile he tried to prohibition TikTok outright. Some of Trump's apical brass, including Secretary of State nominee Marco Rubio, personification been nan ban's astir vocal supporters.

"TikTok extended nan Chinese Communist Party's powerfulness and powerfulness into our ain nation, correct nether our noses," Rubio said successful a spot merchandise connected his website successful April. "I personification been raising concerns astir TikTok since 2019, truthful this caller norm forcing ByteDance to divest from TikTok is simply a immense measurement toward confronting Beijing's malign influence. It's official: Communist China is connected nan clock."

Related: 'You Own Nothing Here connected Social': Meta Outage, Looming TikTok Ban Has Creators Questioning How Much of Their Business They Really Control

TikTok based connected that nan deadline should beryllium delayed aliases paused while it awaits a Supreme Court review, but a nationalist appeals tribunal denied nan petition past week.

In an emergency exertion connected Monday, TikTok's attorneys asked nan Supreme Court to find by January 6 truthful that nan institution tin "coordinate pinch their activity providers to execute nan analyzable task of shutting down nan TikTok level only successful nan United States" successful clip for nan Jan. 19 deadline.

In a tribunal filing earlier successful December, TikTok said that if nan prohibition happens, creators and mini businesses successful nan U.S. could suffer $1.3 cardinal successful gross and nett successful conscionable 1 month.

TikTok has overmuch than 150 cardinal users successful nan U.S., according to nan company. In May, Chew was an honorary chair of nan Met Gala astatine New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Related: I Have Over 214,000 Followers connected TikTok. Here's What I'm Doing Right Now In Case a Ban Happens.