TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to meet with President-Elect Donald Trump on Monday, in a last-ditch effort to avoid a ban on the popular social media platform in the United States. The meeting comes as the ban, initially scheduled to take effect on January 19th, just one day before Trump's inauguration, looms large over the company's future in the country.

The meeting marks the latest attempt by TikTok to stave off the ban, which was initially imposed by the Trump administration over national security concerns. Chew's meeting with Trump follows a string of high-profile meetings between the President-Elect and other tech giants, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Despite initially leading the charge against TikTok, Trump appeared to reverse course earlier this year. In March, he stated that he didn't want a TikTok ban, citing concerns that it would only serve to make Facebook bigger, which he considers "an enemy of the people." Trump later joined TikTok in June, further muddying the waters surrounding the platform's fate.

When asked about the TikTok ban during a press conference on Monday, Trump said he would "take a look," leaving the door open for a potential reprieve. Meanwhile, tech giants, including Meta, Amazon, and OpenAI, have donated to Trump's inauguration fund, raising questions about the influence of big tech on the incoming administration's policies.

TikTok's legal team, meanwhile, has asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the case, following a loss in appeals court. The platform's lawyers are seeking to overturn the ban-or-divest law, which would require TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest its US operations or face a complete ban.

The implications of a TikTok ban would be far-reaching, with millions of users in the US relying on the platform for entertainment, socialization, and self-expression. The ban would also have significant economic consequences, as TikTok has become a major player in the digital advertising space.

As the clock ticks down to the January 19th deadline, all eyes will be on the outcome of Chew's meeting with Trump and the Supreme Court's decision on TikTok's appeal. One thing is certain: the fate of TikTok in the US hangs precariously in the balance, with the platform's future uncertain.

In the broader context, the TikTok saga highlights the ongoing tensions between the US government and Chinese tech companies, as well as the complex dance between big tech and the political establishment. As the tech industry continues to evolve and grow in influence, the stakes surrounding these relationships will only continue to rise.