12 viral and trending moments of 2025: What’s your top pick?

OpenAI’s ChatGPT update sparked global selfies, memes in Ghibli style. The Studio Ghibli AI filter became a hit due to a combination of its highly nostalgic and emotionally resonant art style, extreme accessibility through popular AI tools, and the inherent shareability of transforming personal photos into the whimsical Ghibli aesthetic. People enjoyed sharing their “Ghibli-fied” selfies, pets, and landscapes, which further fueled the trend’s exponential growth.

During a July 2025 concert, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin jokingly commented on a couple’s awkward reaction to being featured on the jumbotron, quipping, “‘Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy'”. The moment went viral and led to significant real-world consequences for the couple, who were later identified as a tech CEO and a colleague. It led to resignations/divorce memes.

1 Gorilla, also known as “100 Guys vs. 1 Gorilla”, refers to a viral debate about who would win in a fight to the death, 100 men or one gorilla. The concept went viral on TikTok and spread to Twitter / X and Reddit in late April 2025. Some posted simulations that overwhelmingly showed the gorilla defeating the 100 men. Reddit tweet reignited vs silverback gorilla; TikTok/YouTube went wild with endless memes. 

The American Eagle jeans ad featuring Sydney Sweeney went viral due to a controversial wordplay where Sweeney says, “My jeans are blue”, a pun, after discussing her genes, which some viewers interpreted as a potentially racist reference to eugenics or even Nazi propaganda. Others found the ad clever, while Sweeney’s representatives and the brand defended it, stating it was about her jeans and her story. The ad also went viral because of Sweeney’s large social media following and the brand’s intentionally provocative advertising strategy. Donald Trump and Ted Cruz defended the ad.

It’s a heartwarming tale of deep-sea fish seeking light inspires art/tattoos. The “Anglerfish sun quest story” is a viral internet narrative, largely on social media platforms like TikTok, born from a rare scientific event in February 2025 where a deep-sea black seadevil anglerfish was filmed near the ocean’s surface off the coast of Tenerife.

Taylor Swift’s “Opalite” (released October 3, 2025) ignited a global TikTok dance trend with smooth arm gestures and flowing moves, exploding in Asia. Group performances emerged amid social challenges. Tutorials by Miko Yanson/Ana Bensig hit 1M+ views. On YouTube, dance workouts/remixes drew hundreds of thousands of views. Meanwhile, Japan Airlines crew and Chinese classes joined the craze; Reddit upvotes predict chart-topper as reels are flooded globally. Reddit hails Opalite’s #1 potential, like “Shake It Off.”