Is CapCut back? What we know as TikTok restores services after Trump comments

After TikTok’s short-lived reprieve of less than a day, Americans woke up to the removal of the popular video editing app CapCut from the app stores. Soon after President-elect Trump’s assurance of TikTok’s restoration at a pre-inauguration rally on Sunday, where he stressed on seeking a joint venture with the Chinese social behemoth, netizens discovered that several ByteDance-owned apps like CapCut were neither working for users in the US nor were they available on the App Store or Google Play.

The viral short-form video editor displays the following message when accessing its website:

"Sorry, CapCut isn't available right now A law banning CapCut has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can't use CapCut for now. Rest assured, we're working to restore our service in the U.S. Please stay tuned! In the meantime, you can still manage your account data. If you need support, contact us at [email protected]."

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Is CapCut banned?

While never explicitly cited, several pundits and sources well-versed with the developements predicted a sweeping restriction of all ByteDance-owned services. Along with TikTok and CapCut, Lemon8, a social lifestyle app, and Marvel Snap, a digital card game, were made unavailable to American users. Both Google and Apple have implemented notices for users searching for ByteDance-owned apps.

TikTok Policy handle, however, expressed gratitude to President-elect Trump’s announcement on X (formerly Twitter):

"In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive. It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States."

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ByteDance’s loss is Instagram’s gain

As TikTok scrambled to get back online, Instagram wasted no time in announcing their own short video editor. Titled Edits, the app is currently listed only on Apple’s App Store as a pre-order.

Unveiling the app in a reel, Instagram’s head, Adam Mosseri, said,

"Now, there's a lot going on in the world right now and no matter what happens, we think it's our job to create the most compelling creative tools for those of you who make videos for not just Instagram but for platforms out there, as we can."

You can watch the entire announcement here: