The influx of more than 700,000 new users has been driven by a looming U.S. ban on TikTok, used by 170 million Americans, on national security concerns.

As the fate of TikTok hangs in the balance, U.S. TikTok users are flocking to Xiaohongshu — making it the top downloaded app in the U.S.

TikTok said Sunday it was restoring service to users in the United States after the popular video-sharing platform went dark in response to a federal ban that President-elect Donald Trump said he would try to pause by executive order on his first day in office.

Even if temporary, the unprecedented shutdown of TikTok is set to have a wide-ranging impact on U.S.-China relations, U.S. politics, the social media marketplace and millions of Americans.

Trump has said he has a "warm spot" for the app, a distinct change of heart after his first administration first called for a ban on TikTok.

The US Supreme Court has ended TikTok’s nine-month legal battle, forcing leaders both within the company and in Beijing to consider a dwindling set of alternatives for keeping the popular video-sharing app alive.

TikTok is set to be banned in the US on 19 January after the Supreme Court denied a last ditch legal bid from its Chinese owner, ByteDance. It found the law banning the social media platform did not violate the first amendment rights of TikTok and its 170 million users,