"I have been against a TikTok ban for a long time, because it goes against freedom of speech. That said, the current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in America, but X

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would be supportive of the world's richest man and his close aide, Elon Musk, buying TikTok "if he wanted to". Trump was asked if he would be open to the billionaire founder of Tesla buying the short-video platform facing a nationwide ban in the US after the Supreme Court last week upheld a law requiring TikTok to sever ties with its Chinese parent ByteDance.

Three days after ByteDance's TikTok went dark and then was quickly revived in the United States, users who deleted the app were anxiously checking iPhone and Android devices to find it still unavailable to be downloaded again.

TikTok remains unavailable on Apple and Google app stores despite President Trump’s executive order temporarily pausing the federal ban. Here's what it means for users and the app's future.

TikTok was banned in the U.S. due to national security concerns over its Chinese ownership, prompting federal action requiring ByteDance to divest. Despite delays in enforcement, the app remains unavailable in US app stores until a sale to a U.