How TikTok cozied up to wealthy investors in Saudi Arabia and the UAE Rest of World By: Emily Baker-White 6 November 2025 at 06:00 When TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew arrived at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in October 2024, he had no intention of criticizing the Saudi government. He was there at... © Bryan van der Beek/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesShou Zi Chew, chief executive officer of TikTok Inc., in 2022.