Welcome to The Hill's Technology newsletter {beacon} Technology Technology   The Big Story  What to know about the SCOTUS TikTok ruling The Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld a law requiring TikTok’s China-based parent company to divest from the app, teeing up a ban set to take effect Sunday. © Jacquelyn Martin, Associated Press The justices sided with the Biden administration, finding the divest-or-ban law does not violate the First Amendment just three days before President-elect Trump is set to take office.   Trump had urged the justices to delay the deadline so he could negotiate a deal, but the court instead acted with breakneck speed.   However, the Biden administration does not plan to enforce the law ahead of inauguration, ultimately leaving the decision to Trump and seemingly allowing the app to stay online for the time being.   “There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” the court said in its opinion.   “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”    The court was unanimous in its judgment, although Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch filed separate concurrences.    The law, which was passed by wide bipartisan majorities in Congress and signed by President Biden last April, gave TikTok’s parent company ByteDance 270 days to divest from the app or face a ban from U.S. app stores.   TikTok has argued divestment is not a feasible option and that it will “go dark” as of Sunday. It contended the impending ban infringes on the First Amendment rights of both the company and its 170 million American users.   The court rejected those arguments, instead ruling in favor of the government.   The Biden administration asserted that any free speech concerns are superseded by a national security interest over the app’s ties to China, raising alarm that the Chinese government could access Americans’ data or covertly manipulate TikTok’s content algorithm.    “Under these circumstances, we find the Government’s data collection justification sufficient to sustain the challenged provisions,” the court’s opinion reads.    Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.   Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, we're Julia Shapero and Miranda Nazzaro — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.   Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.   Essential Reads  How policy will be impacting the tech sector now and in the future:   TikTok ban: 5 takeaways from Supreme Court’s decision  The Supreme Court ruled Friday that a law requiring TikTok’s parent company to divest from the popular video-sharing platform or face a ban was constitutional, siding with the government in a battle over free speech and national security. The decision marks a sharp loss for TikTok, although the app’s fate is still undecided. The ban is slated to take effect Jan. 19, the final full day of President Biden’s term. But the …  Full Story   Kevin O’Leary says he’s offering $20B cash for TikTok Investor Kevin O’Leary, widely known as a star from “Shark Tank,” said he offered TikTok’s owners $20 billion in cash to buy the platform during a Friday appearance on Fox News’s “America’s Newsroom.” A bipartisan bill, which President Biden signed, called TikTok a threat to national security and forces ByteDance, the platform’s Chinese parent company, to divest from the platform or sell it in order for TikTok to remain …  Full Story   Pence lauds TikTok ruling: ‘Victory for privacy’ Former Vice President Mike Pence applauded the Supreme Court’s decision Friday to uphold the ban on TiKTok, calling it a “victory for privacy and security of the American people.” “The Supreme Court’s decision upholding the law requiring TikTok to divest from the Chinese Communist Party is a victory for the privacy and security of the American people,” Pence wrote on social platform …  Full Story   The Refresh  News we've flagged from the intersection of tech and other topics:   EU ramps up probe into X content moderation The European Commission on Friday said it will step up a probe to determine whether Elon Musk's social media platform X violated EU content moderation rules, Reuters reports.    FAA calls for SpaceX, Blue Origin to probe test flights The Federal Aviation Administration said SpaceX and Blue Origin must investigate what went wrong with each of the company's rocket test fights this week, TechCrunch reports.    On Our Radar  Upcoming news themes and events we're watching: Trump's incoming AI and crypto czar David Sacks will host the first ever "Crypto Ball" in Washington, D.C., on Friday at 8 p.m. ET.  President-elect Trump will be inaugurated next Monday, with several leading technology executives expected at the Capitol.    In Other News  Branch out with other reads on The Hill: Gorsuch warns foreign adversaries could replace TikTok for surveillance Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch expressed concerns Friday that the divest-or-ban law targeting TikTok might not “achieve its goals.” Gorsuch warned that foreign adversaries could ultimately turn to another application for surveillance of U.S. data if TikTok is no longer used in the U.S. “Whether this law will succeed in achieving its ends, I do not know. A determined foreign adversary may just seek to replace … Full Story   TikTok CEO thanks Trump for commitment to finding solution after court upholds ban TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew thanked President-elect Trump on Friday for his commitment to find a solution that keeps the app available in the U.S., after the Supreme Court upheld a law requiring the platform to divest from its China-based parent company or face a ban.  “On behalf of everyone at TikTok and all our users across the country, I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to work with us to find a solution … Full Story   What Others are Reading  Two key stories on The Hill right now: Senate GOP rejects House conservative pitch on corporate tax rates House conservative proposals to raise corporate taxes to offset the cost of President-elect Trump’s tax package ...  Read more Ramaswamy plans run for Ohio governor Vivek Ramaswamy, the co-chair of President-elect Trump’s new “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), plans to run for governor … Read more     You're all caught up. 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