Users who have the TikTok app on their phone will still be able to access it after Jan. 19. However, because the ban would prevent Apple and Google from providing the app with necessary updates, TikTok would quickly break down and become unusable, leading Americans to look for an alternative app.

TikTok may be banned in the U.S. over the weekend, but Americans are heading to another Chinese-owned video platform: RedNote.

Furious at the prospect of a US government ban on social media platform TikTok, American users have flocked to another Chinese-owned app in droves, many with a defiant message: "Take my data!"

Americans are going to lose access to TikTok in less than a week, unless China green-lights a sale to what Congress has deemed a non-adversary of the United States — something China is unlikely to do but might.

Chinese officials are evaluating a potential option that involves Elon Musk acquiring the U.S. operations if TikTok fails to fend off a controversial ban.