TikTok ban therapist upsell

I now take weekends off from ideas. Between the TikTok ban, the incoming president launching a memecoin, and the viral sticky note date rejection, it has been an extremely eventful weekend that makes me consider never going offline.

Let’s focus on the TikTok ban. Many people are surprised by this turn of events, but I’m not. Government timelines move slow, and the amount of money needed to facilitate a sale of the app and algorithm (arguably the most valuable piece of IP on earth) did not seem like something that could happen before the ban went into effect.

I don’t use TikTok much, but confirmed it was shut off last night before stepping into a theater to see The Brutalist. Today, I thought about how irate many consumers are at this change. What if there was a way to console them?

You can imagine a world where this barrier acts as a funnel to other apps rather than a help center, and many people suffering from screen addiction could use a chat with a therapist, so what if they introduced this (and upsells to other apps) in the modal?

Due to both legislative and obvious business reasons, I doubt this change will ever happen. However, it’s likely to be the most heavily visited modal on the planet for a short time.

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