Trump says he will likely give TikTok a 90-day extension on ban when he takes office

President-elect Donald Trump said he will “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day extension from the app’s potential ban after he takes office – one day after the platform’s expected removal in the US.

“I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” Trump said during a phone interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker.

But Trump admitted the decision wasn’t final.

“We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation,” he said.

The controversial Chinese-owned app is set to be removed as soon as 12:01 a.m. Sunday – and may still go dark for at least a day before Trump can grant the extension Monday. 

The fate of TikTok has been up in the air this week, as the US Supreme Court unanimously voted Friday to uphold a law that will ban TikTok nationwide unless the Beijing-based company, ByteDance, sells it to a US-approved buyer. 

The law was the result of longtime concerns from US officials about Chinese spying and national security, as well as the platform’s access to sensitive user data. 

But the provisions of the law state that the president has the ability to grant a one-time extension of 90 days if he can prove to Congress that there’s a path to divestiture, “significant progress” is being made toward its execution, and that the potential sale meets all of the legal requirements set forth.

While speaking to the outlet Saturday, Trump did not say if he knew of any advancements toward a sale.

Adding a twist to the issue, however, CNBC reported the California-based artificial intelligence search engine Perplexity AI submitted a bid Saturday to ByteDance, proposing a new entity that combines Perplexity, TikTok US and other capital partners. Any potential deal would take months to complete, but Trump’s musings about adding 90 days to the deadline could offer enough time to at least get a structure of a deal together.

ByteDance previously said it would not sell TikTok US. The Perplexity deal was proposed as a merger with the US portion of the company, not a buyout, which may give it a chance to succeed.

Trump, who initially threatened to ban TikTok during his first term, more recently has expressed support for the app. 

On Friday, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew thanked Trump “for his commitment to work with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available in the United States.” 

In a separate statement Friday, TikTok announced it will go dark in the US Sunday unless President Joe Biden provides assurances to companies like Google and Apple that they will not face violation fees of up to $5,000 per user that has access to the platform after the ban goes into effect. 

The White House slammed Chew’s comment as a stunt, and said that it was up to the Trump administration to take action – increasing the likelihood of the app’s removal on Sunday. 

“We see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

The company still expects service providers like Google and Apple to restrict access to the app starting Sunday because they could face huge fines if the ban takes effect.

At Trump’s invitation, Chew reportedly plans to attend his presidential inauguration Monday.

With Post wires