From Practical Destinations to Intent-Driven Platforms

For much of the past decade, B2B brands have used social media like an all-in-one, multi-purpose tool, and audiences congregated on a select few primary platforms based more on practicality than preference:

• Facebook/Instagram were the scale drivers, with wide audience reach but mixed B2B intent.

• LinkedIn was the professional relevance center where buyers and sellers actually overlapped.

• YouTube became the go-to for education and long-form evaluation.

• Twitter (now X) provided real-time industry discussion and commentary.

Today, those roles are morphing due to how people choose to spend time online, and audiences are becoming increasingly intentional about the platforms they choose. Like pivoting a vacation from an all-inclusive resort to a VRBO in Versailles. According to recent data on platform usage trends:

• LinkedIn remains dominant with growing scale in the B2B realm, generating 2-3 times more leads than Facebook, Instagram, and X combined, and being used by most B2B companies worldwide, while emerging platforms like TikTok and Reddit show early traction among tech and younger buyers.

• Traditional platforms like X/Twitter are declining in usage and marketer prioritization, while Reddit and TikTok are growing as destinations for discussion and discovery.

• Platforms like Substack and Discord offer an engaged and authentic community without the “middleman,” which isn’t easily sustainable on larger platforms.

Why This Shift Is Happening

Four key factors reshape where B2B audiences now spend time:

1. Intentional attention: People are becoming more selective with limited screen time, opting for platforms that deliver relevant value rather than simply passive entertainment.

2. Audience fragmentation: No single “town square” exists anymore. Audiences scatter to niche communities and interest-driven platforms.

3. Evolving behaviors: Users want formats that educate, demonstrate expertise, or foster candid discussion, shifting away from polished broadcast posts.

4. Proof over promise: Customers trust others with similar needs more than brands throwing out claims. This is supported by data showing employee posts get 8x more engagement than content shared by brand channels.

What’s happening in social media is similar to the shift from network TV to cable channels (and eventually streaming services), when blanket broadcasts gave way to niche, intent-driven viewing. Similarly, social audiences are no longer passively consuming whatever is available; they choose context and community. This impacts which platforms matter, how brands need to show up, and the desire for hyper-personalization that will only get stronger.

How Social Is Increasingly Specialized

Platform behaviors continue to change and define distinct user expectations:

• LinkedIn: Once just an online résumé directory, it’s now a hub for professional identity, thought leadership, and trusted recommendations. People showcase expertise and signal credibility.

• Instagram: Beyond curated lifestyle posts, it’s a venue for aspirational consumption of ideas, trends, visual inspiration, and increasingly educational videos.

• Reddit: No longer social media in the traditional sense, Reddit functions as topic communities where users seek honest discussion from peers.

• TikTok: Creativity and short-form video meets exploration and demo culture, where users discover and evaluate through “micro-learning.”

• YouTube: Where audiences go for longer-form education, detailed explanations, and demonstrations that help them evaluate options and build confidence.

For B2B audiences, these behaviors signal key strategic thresholds:

• LinkedIn is where they go to look smart.

• Instagram is where they go to find inspiration.

• Reddit is where they go for straight talk.

• TikTok is where they go for quick insights.

• YouTube is where they go for deep learning.

INSIGHT: Time is Money, and Relevance Earns the Most.

People now treat social media time as a scarce resource. Movements like “touching grass” reflect larger cultural pushes toward intentional consumption and digital wellbeing. This isn’t just about fatigue, but rather a desire to be efficient with time spent on their devices.

When time is scarce, audiences skip brand monologues and look for ­evaluation by proxy, observing what others say and do before engaging. That’s the essence of social proof and crowd-sourced validation: buyers don’t just want product info; they want signals that others like them have vetted it.

In addition, business decision makers aren’t experimental. A wrong choice can hit revenue and reputation. So B2B decision makers increasingly validate via others’ experiences (peers, customers, and influencers) before commitment, and sometimes have already made their decision before researching options.

• Roughly 75% of B2B buyers use social media to support purchasing decisions.

• LinkedIn influences the majority of B2B lead and discovery journeys.

TAKEAWAY:
While trust is a nice to have in B2C marketing, for B2B audiences it’s a requirement; and trust today is measured through authentic connection and credible third-party validation, not polished ads.

Emotional Connection Over Product Features

B2B buyers are people first. Their decisions combine logic (cost, ROI, technical fit etc.) and emotional confidence:

• They want assurance their choices will lead to success.

• They want credibility that aligns with their identity and values.

Brands that focus solely on technical differentiation miss the human element. Emotional differentiation, including things like speaking to ambition, belonging, and assurance, drives deeper engagement and trust. Detailing product features that lean into category buzzwords might play a role in optimizing SEO and AEO, but when they dominate content it can inhibit a brand’s ability to establish a differentiated presence in the marketplace. Having a unique and ownable voice is the best way to become a beacon for audiences lost in the sea of sameness.

This shift explains why smart B2B marketers are borrowing tactics traditionally used in CPG and B2C marketing. Things like narrative storytelling, carefully crafted personality, and emphasis on relatable interests; especially through influencers and creator partnerships.

INSIGHT: People Trust Influencers Over Brands Because They Are Rooted In Culture, Not Simply Picking the Lowest Hanging Fruit.

The most successful influencers aren’t just broadcasting messages, they are embedded in culture. They are trusted intermediaries whose audiences see them as peers rather than corporate spokespeople.

Research shows social proof and peer recommendation strongly influence decisions:

• Roughly 82% of B2B buyers trust peer recommendations over vendor messaging.

• Trust in social media influencer recommendations has nearly doubled in the last 2 years

In an environment where brand loyalty is declining, and product differentiation is increasingly harder to establish, making your audience feel something is more important than making them understand something. That’s why influencer content matters: it normalizes your brand through the lens of someone your audience already trusts; and it has led to several trends we’re seeing gain momentum within the B2B industry:

• Brand ambassador programs where practitioners, customers, or internal experts create ongoing content.

• Founder and internal SME content that mirrors creator style (unscripted, personality-forward, and educational).

• Partnerships with niche thought leaders who intersect technical expertise with cultural relevance, and most importantly, have authentic alignment to brand values; not simply reach.

neuemotion’s campaign partnering TikTok food critic Keith Lee and restaurant POS mainstay, Toast, embraced Keith’s unique power to uncover hidden culinary gems and amplify local and family-owned restaurants to new viral heights. Rather than zero in on Toast technology or product-focused messaging around ease of use or scalability, we centered Keith’s natural charisma and genuine concern to uplift struggling restaurants and celebrate “The Little Things”—the hours, the sacrifices, the risks, and more that collectively make an impactful dining experience. The campaign was solely focused on elevating deserving restaurants and giving back through multiple $50,000 prizes. Keith acted as a trusted voice with huge cultural relevance rather than a brand spokesperson with required messaging.

TAKEAWAY:
This doesn’t mean turning every marketer into a TikToker, it means applying creator-like authenticity where it matters: be it brand stories, reviews, demonstrations, or micro-learning.

Bringing That Style to Life As A Brand

Influencer and creator content works not because it’s polished, but because it feels real.

1. Human-centric & relatable. Content feels like peer conversation, not corporate shill or AI slop. While leaning into AI-generated copy and visuals can create efficiencies, they will also further entrench brands who overuse them in a homogenized landscape.

2. Imperfect formats. Low-fi visuals, “shot on iPhone” authenticity, and hooks that recognize people’s limited attention spans.

Examples brands can leverage:

• Day-in-the-life: segments showing real people and their workflows.

• Step-by-step walk-throughs: mirroring educational content.

• Transformation narratives: bringing before/after or challenge/solution style to case studies.

3. Emotional framing over product specs. Instead of “our feature does X,” try “here’s how this transforms your entire day.”

These tactics aren’t just creative flourishes, they align with how modern B2B buyers validate and internalize confidence before engaging in high-stakes decisions.

Conclusion: What Are the Most Actionable Next Steps

1. Meet people where they are, not where you want them to be.
LinkedIn remains essential for professional reach and credibility, but expanding into Reddit, TikTok, and community spaces can cast a wider net on those doing evaluation by proxy. Just don’t expect overnight success.

2. Shift from broadcast to trusted signal creation.
Trust today comes through others’ voices (user voices, peer recommendations, real conversations, etc.) more than polished brand messaging. Get comfortable with an organic look and feel.

3. Use influencer and creator tactics with purpose.
This isn’t pandering, it’s understanding how people validate claims. Bring that into B2B through real stories, expert voices, and unscripted educational content.

4. Design for confidence, not just awareness.
Buyers won’t experiment; they need conviction before the decision. Embed social proof into content at every step.

5. Empathy and practical insight establish credibility.
Tie features to real-world transformation and human outcomes to move from attention to connection.

Welcome to neuewave!

Typically, the monthly trend breakdown covers a collection of trends that have risen on social media, and what that signifies to us about culture as a whole. For March, as we analyzed social trends and cultural shifts, we have been fascinated by the rise and fall of various public figures– those who have either won or lost the public’s approval from their own content or public image. These individuals seemed to have led the online conversations and trends of the last month, revealing just how closely relatability and aspiration are intertwined for today’s social audience.

As we analyzed the rise and fall of this month’s key figures, one thing became clear: today’s audience isn’t just looking for inspiration—they’re looking for someone who still feels human enough to recognize themselves in. Let’s dive in!

It Girls & It Boys

If you want to figure out which “It” boy and girl will be thrust into the limelight in the upcoming months, look no further than Peacock’s “The Traitors”. After the finale (spoiler alert), where Rob Rausch from “Love Island” won the game by duping everyone, especially his faithful ally and fellow “Love Island” alum, Maura Higgins, Rob has been tapped by every brand that can get their hands on him; a MAC cosmetics billboard in Times Square, smut reading for Quinn, and campaigns for Kind, Doordash, and Celsius, to name a few. Maura’s own virality around her accent, fashion, and her new Birkin bag, gifted by Rob, has also earned her further notoriety. The two of them together have become new rising stars in pop culture.

This is a similar tale to last year’s season of “The Traitors”, where winners Gabby Windey and Dylan Efron, both with relatively modest fame going into the show, became massively popular after their time on the show. Both accumulated just under 300k followers on Instagram and have been tapped for bigger opportunities, including brand campaigns, film opportunities, and a spot on “Dancing with the Stars”. With the competition show’s rising popularity, it seems that if brands want to identify the next big influencer to partner with, they should look no further than next season’s cast list.

Another winner whose fame has recently skyrocketed is Alysa Liu, the Olympic Gold Medal-winning figure skater and the latest, unconventional Gen Z “It” girl. Admired for her unique style and laid-back mindset, she has graced the cover of Teen Vogue, inspired countless viral clips and photos, and made appearances on major TV programs including the “Today” show and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”. In the last month she’s become an overnight role model and a household name.

Lastly, do not think we have not seen the resurgence of “It” Couple, JFK Jr. and CBK. The new TV show “Love Story” has brought Carolyn Bassette Kennedy to the attention of younger generations, specifically her fashion sense. A promised “CBK Summer” of preppy, simple looks is already beginning to hit social feeds. JFK Jr. is also becoming a rediscovered heartthrob for Gen Z. In fact, his renewed popularity through the show has sparked another trend to resurface: The lookalike contest. Two have been held so far, and has furthered the renewed interest in the American “It” Couple, along with the actors playing them being thrust into a new level of stardom themselves.

@cnnThe "JFK Jr. effect" was in full swing in Washington Sq. Park, as NYC men showed up in JFK Jr. inspired looks that brought back a wave of nostalgia and a reminder of the fashion icon's legacy.

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How this shows up on social:

It Boys and It Girls naturally wield plenty of content online, with Alysa Liu’s mindset and dance to Pink Pantheress “Stateside” has the track topping TikTok sounds, Traitors social commentary and Birkin Bag tours becoming viral, CBK-coded fashion and analysis beginning to circulate.

@accesshollywoodWe’re so glad @frigouscigous is back stateside 🥇#alysaliu #winterolympics

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It seems like in a world full of increasing tension, we are finding comfort in those we can relate to and feel like elevated versions of ourselves. When we see people who feel grounded or relatable rise to meteoric fame and luxury, we aren’t just fans of their success; we are also fans of the fact that they—like us—are new to it as well.

Look at the “Heated Rivalry” craze from earlier this year. Part of the magnetic appeal was the “regularness” of the leads—the fact that they were working as restaurant servers only months before they were presenting at the Golden Globes. Similarly, we find the relatability and grounded nature of Alysa Liu, Maura Higgins, or Rob Rausch captivating as they find new levels of notoriety. We get to enjoy glamour and success, but through someone who, until very recently, felt like one of our own.

Elite Misery

Just as a shared affinity for those we would like to elevate socially, we can just as easily find joy in the collective scrutiny of those perceived as disconnected from common culture. The CEO of McDonald’s learned this lesson the hard way this month, following his “taste test” video for the new Big Arch burger. Viewers were captivated by the robotic delivery, his strange reference to the burger as a “product”, and his hesitance to take a meaningful bite of the burger he’s trying to sell.

This video touches on a key distinction in authenticity. We know that authenticity matters more than ever for social audiences– but authenticity is multidimensional. It’s not unreasonable to assume that this video captured CEO Chris Kempczinski’s personality and the way he speaks about the company authentically, which is probably why there were no flags from the McD’s social team to rethink posting it. But what may be authentic to him, does not read as authentic to the human experience as a whole; if your ‘true self’ feels more like a corporate robot than a normal person enjoying a burger, the audience will view you as alien rather than a trusted source.

This alien quality isn’t just reserved for the corporate elite, but can manifest just as sharply when a creator’s personal brand appears insensitive to the global reality.

Dubai has become a global influencer hub in recent years, with an estimated 50,000 calling the destination home. Dubai-based influencers, whose (often) state-sponsored, hyper-luxurious lifestyles are under fire as they continue to party and post through global conflict. While many have expressed serious concern and distress, those who have complained about the flight restrictions in place, or their plans being thwarted due to the conflict have been quickly shut up by the internet for their out-of-touch coverage of global tragedy. While in completely different contexts, the throughline of content that feels out of touch or disconnected from the experience of everyday people will always harm the creator’s reputation with the audience that views it.

At a time when recently-regular stars are entering an era of newfound fame, the general consensus is one of celebration and acceptance for those who feel like us being rewarded after hard work, while executives and luxe-concerned influencers are increasingly difficult to find common ground with.

How this shows up on social:

Seeing other fast-food leaders join the public in ridiculing the McD’s stiff performance has provided a unique sense of vindication for a weary audience. While the gen pop isn’t typically eager to hear from CEOs, the opportunity to appeal to the masses and appear like “one of us” created a rare moment of collective acceptance.

Their parodies have inspired countless recreations by other industries and small businesses, with their CEOs trying their products in their own videos. For brands that chose to stay out of it, like In-N-Out, consumers are filling the void with a growing collection of parody videos of the parody videos impersonating their CEO.

Dichotomy of Nostalgia

2000s IPs have emerged as the nostalgia engine this month, with media from the aughts undergoing high-profile reboots and investigative deep dives. Leading the charge, Hilary Duff’s return to music has reignited millennial Disney Channel nostalgia, as she officially confirmed her return to the global stage with “The Lucky Me Tour,” and “Call Her Daddy” appearance, plus a viral teaser for a Hannah Montana 20th-anniversary special has stirred excitement from fans.

Parallel to these celebratory returns is a surge in “post-reality” docuseries that transform the cult-classic spectacles of the 2000s into modern reckonings. New docuseries investigating the complicated legacies of America’s Next Top Model (ANTM to spare our fingers) and The Biggest Loser have dominated streaming charts, inviting audiences to re-examine the era’s problematic beauty standards and media practices. Although, these docuseries don’t quite take accountability for the problems– in fact, they seem to say “yeah it’s bad, but YOU, TV watchers, wanted it!” but that’s neither here nor there.

It’s a funny – peculiar even – dichotomy we face. The rose-colored glasses we have for decades past, where trends like missing 2016 and analogue revivals dominate the cultural zeitgeist, is juxtaposed with cultural moments we’d rather leave alone and remember as they were. Some moments, like the return of Disney icons, feel like a warm hug; others serve as a stark wake-up call to the era’s overlooked wrongdoings. It’s a messy brand of nostalgia that simultaneously welcomes back Hilary Duff while finally holding Tyra Banks accountable. Now that they’re back in the cultural conversation, society is left to unpack and address cultural elements that we want to leave behind. It’s literally only a matter of time until we’re reflecting back on this moment in time in the same way.

How this shows up on social:

The dichotomy of nostalgia is also evident in the content that has followed these reckoning. Specifically, when we look at the fallout of the ANTM-docuseries, the internet is awash with critiques of iconic moments, catching up with former models who were burned by the show, and commentary at large about how culture shaped ANTM, and vice versa. Alongside these in-depth analysis, we also saw a content trend making fun of the ways Tyra traumatized contestants through making them relive their worst moments, pointing to the show’s real damage caused through comedic content.

@coach_moniquebest photo of the week with a side of trauma #antm #blizzard #tyrabanks #nyc

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In a world that feels increasingly heavy, we’re gravitating towards anything and anyone that feels grounded. From elevating new icons from TV and sports to collectively rejecting those that feel out of touch, the underlying demand remains the same: show us something real.

We know brands are feeling the pressure to be authentic and find genuine connections with online audiences. In a world where brands try to act like our friends and people act like a brand, we wonder whether there will be a priority moving forward to tap into this new “It” factor by embracing more stars plucked from obscurity to capitalize on their newfound appeal. This month is revealing that the real luxury for audiences is knowing that those they support stand on common ground.

Welcome to neuewave!

Super Bowl Sunday gives a rare opportunity to marketers and brands: a day where people don’t mind being marketed to. A moment when your commercial has the potential to be the star of a sporting event you don’t even have to play in. However, the sentiment online (and internally) is that the ads this year left much to be desired. Overall, our team felt that the collection lacked creativity, memorable moments, and relied too heavily on celebrity star power versus original ideals and well-executed scripts.

While we know making a Super Bowl commercial is no easy feat, the inundation of AI, GLP-1s, and sports betting ads felt like signs of the times rather than the beloved fun that Super Bowl ads are known for.

While we assume the highlight of your Sunday was the Bad Bunny Halftime Show, the Seahawks securing another Lombardi Trophy, or bursting at the seams from too much buffalo chicken dip— there were still some ad diamonds in the rough, and for this month’s trend report, we polled the neuemotion team to get their take on what hit and what we can learn going forward.

🦅 Budweiser “American Icons”

Budweiser is a Super Bowl legacy brand, and they brought it this year with their American Icons spot. Their Clydesdale horse, which many consider a Super Bowl centerpiece, and an American bald eagle bridged the gap between heartwarming, cute, and humorous. The message was clear, and the brand’s icons resonated, even as tension persists within the country. Cutting back from the commercial to the live broadcast, seeing the Clydesdale horse with a bald eagle on its back live at Levi Stadium was a clever carryover between their spot and the main event, without having to put anything on social (which they notably didn’t).

The Lesson:

Budweiser knows who they are and stuck to it. Leading with authenticity and positioning American icons that we could all recognize, connect to, and root for deeply resonates when our media landscape is often chaotic and quickly evolving.

🍌 Instacart “Bananas”

Instacart’s spot featuring Ben Stiller and Benson Boone was a neuemotion favorite for three big reasons.

1. It brought some of that outrageous, goofy Super Bowl spot humor that we know and love, which, as we said, felt missing from many of the ads this year.

2. While many Super Bowl commercials feature big-name celebrities, this one felt like the celebrities were picked with purpose, actually playing to the celebrities’ personas and strengths to connect to a fun concept that didn’t feel forced.

3. The value prop was clear and connected to a common struggle shoppers deal with when using grocery delivery apps: “Am I buying 3 bananas, or 3 bunches of bananas?”. While a simple concept, it resonates with their customers’ biggest struggles and communicates how Instacart alleviates this pain point.

On social, they leaned into the “banana” joke with UGC-style content, featuring many, many bananas, turning a center stage moment into an inside joke for their social following, leaning into the element of: IYKYK.

@instacartMondays, am I right? #bananas

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The Lesson:

The story you’re telling and the problem you are solving for your audience is king. When every Super Bowl ad has a big name reading the lines, star power isn’t enough to make a campaign resonate. The celebrity may grab attention, but how you insert those personalities into the broader story to bring real value to your audience is what makes an ad sticky beyond Super Bowl Sunday. Plus, they did more than just reformat the spot and repost it on social. They created an extension fit for the platform rather than trying to recreate the magic of the spot in 9x16.

🦕 Xfinity “Jurassic Park… Works”

While I was baffled to see not one, but two ads that CGI’d celebrities to look younger, this ad was a neuemotion favorite. Aside from the effects, there was a familiar and frequent brand formula– using nostalgia and beloved IPs, while inserting a brand into a story we know and love.

When we compare the Xfinity ad to Dunkin’s equally CGI’d, IP-driven, nostalgic counterpart, “Good Will Dunkin”, it proves that more is not more. Slotting a brand into a beloved story still needs to feel authentic and thoughtful. Xfinity’s ability to undo all the carnage and trauma of the movie due to their apparent Wi-Fi power perfectly brought the brand value to the story in a way that felt natural– unlike every 90’s IP finding its way into Good Will Hunting, which also happened to be in a Dunkin’? And Tom Brady was there? While nostalgia is a powerful marketing tool, how you do it matters. When it feels disconnected, instead of a welcome connection to a familiar story, it can feel like a disjointed mash-up of nostalgia bait that makes people feel skeptical, not heard.

The Lesson:

With so much messaging about what the future holds, from AI to sports betting to weight loss drugs, inserting familiar stories into modern life continues to matter and captivate audiences. We love nostalgic brands because it makes us feel connected back to our roots, and bringing this feeling of grounding and comfort to new avenues is going to be key for audiences this year.

🚽 Liquid I.V. “Take a Look”

We dare say that the Liquid I.V. spot might have been the most underrated of the night. As a team, we haven’t seen many publications or marketers talk about the Liquid I.V. spot, but our founder, Ted Harrison, noted that, “it’s the ONLY commercial I got texts about from friends not in marketing. It actually did the job it was supposed to do.”

Why? It was fun, cheeky, led with a unique insight that an audience can immediately understand, and that we haven’t seen another electrolyte or sports drink brand take before, making it a standout among the sea of same we felt while watching the spots.

Since its release, the Liquid I.V. brand handles have been active, following the conversation on their Super Bowl spot and commenting on seemingly every video they see, creating more engagement for the spot and between users.

The Lesson:

Today, consumers are constantly being marketed to, which means your content needs to have vision and demonstrate novelty in the sea of sameness. While clarity is important, perhaps we need to give consumers more credit; They can read between the lines of a message. Liquid I.V. could have done what the other ads did: “this is the product, and this is what it does!”, but instead, they worked from an insight, a shared experience, and a fun execution to deliver something both novel and relatable.

While many brands spent millions on nostalgia and celebrity cameos, the ads that actually landed were those that told a fascinating narrative that tapped into shared understandings, genuine emotion, and real problems consumers face.

The perceived usefulness that these spots feature stands out especially among the myriad of AI commercials we saw on Sunday from the likes of Anthropic, Google, Amazon, and OpenAI, where the AI industry as a whole struggles to demonstrate it’s utility to consumers.

The Super Bowl showed us that our gut has been right: story, context, and usefulness matter more than ever to consumers, and the brands that win today aren’t just the ones that grab our attention—they’re the ones that prove they belong in our lives and make it better.

Welcome to neuewave!

Happy New Year! 2026 is in full swing, and we are excited to get into our first trend deep dive of the year. While the New Year always brings fresh energy, with everyone attempting to “lock in” to their goals, ambitions, and aspirations, social media is awash with content reflecting what people hope for in the upcoming year. In our analysis, it is clear that the future is about reclaiming the present and reliving the simpler days of the past.

Before we dive into the trends this month, we wanted to give a few shoutouts:

• Congratulations to our very own Gabby Aidam for being selected as an honoree for the Campaign US Spark Awards Class of 2026! We are so lucky to have such a talented and thoughtful creative producer on the neuemotion team, and who makes beautiful graphics for this newsletter!

• Last month, Assoc. Creative Strategist Hailey Allen went on the Meme Team Podcast to talk about all things trends, pop culture, and 2026 predictions. Check it out here!

Let’s dive in to what socials are looking like at the top of the year.

🕰️ Reclaiming our Time

2025 was the year we saw digital detoxes come to fruition– a real, necessary shift in culture to be on their screens less and in the world more. For 2026, where reducing screen time and pursuing more analog tools/hobbies is a common New Year’s goal, we will see a mass interest in moving away from screens to reclaim our personal time, and experience it as slowly and personally as we can.

This has never been clearer than in recent weeks, where it feels like everyone in our feeds got a Brick for Christmas– a physical device that allows users to lock themselves out of preset apps, and only “unbrick” it by physically tapping the phone to the device. The Brick has seen a serious increase in UGC content, with thousands of videos hitting social media feeds featuring people using their devices, or inquiring about if they should invest in one themselves. While it is not lost on us that you can lock apps in-device, there is something about having a physical device that keeps you grounded in tangible reality that makes this work.

How this shows up on social:

Reducing screen time is no longer just about “logging off”; it’s a radical reclamation of personal agency. We have seen a rise in “Brick my phone with me” content and an increased interest in offline documentation, with journal ecosystems and analog tour videos garnering thousands of views across social channels. There is an inherent irony in filming oneself ‘unplugging’ (and requiring a second device to capture the act of locking away the first), but the message clearly resonates regardless.

However, dare we say the first meme of 2026 had the intention of being more conscious of time and finding personal ways to reclaim it. Enter Tamara, a Tiktok user who has been reluctantly thrust into fame from her since deleted video where she says that she is going to get a jar of 365 buttons (yes, like shirt buttons), one for each day, and carry a new one in her pocket everyday to mark the passing of time, ending the day with transferring her button of the day to a new jar. This sparked an unexpected Tiktok movement (perhaps because it was perfectly random) as people flocked to her comments for clarification. Yet when the attention came, the creator fervently refrained from explaining herself further, responding back, “Hey, it only has to make sense to me for me to do it and I don’t feel like explaining it to anyone else.”

And thus, the motto of 2026 was born, with thousands of videos using the phrase, and people starting their own version of the button jar, including the St. Louis Cardinals and Girl Scouts, to collectively mark the passing of time and feel more connected to our everyday life.

@whatevalolaPERIOD 🙂‍↔️🙂‍↔️🙂‍↔️🙂‍↔️ #fyp #buttons

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🌀 Tightening Nostalgia Loop

Where the internet moves at lightning speed and trends cycle faster than ever before, we have seen a shortening window in the “nostalgia cycles” as well. We used to have a 20-year nostalgia cycle; think of the 2000s kids loving the 80s or the 2010 borrowing from the 90s. However, social media has accelerated this cycle into a 10-year loop, with the 2010’s specifically coming to the forefront of people’s nostalgic hearts.

This is showing up in tech and pop culture: Fujifilm’s newest camera release includes a “Time-Travel” dial that allows you to make a photo look like it was taken in any specific year from 1950 to 2020, effectively turning the present into a curated collage of the past.

Meanwhile, the Kim Kardashian/Fortnite collaboration has fans obsessed with her “iconic moments” being rendered as skins and in-game opportunities— using short-term nostalgia to bring a new audience to the gaming space. We aren’t just looking back at decades anymore; we are looking to specific “internet moments” from just a few years ago and treating them like ancient history. The faster the internet gets, the more we crave the “old” versions of it, and the quicker we feel “nostalgic” for iconic eras and cultural moments.

How this shows up on social:

The consensus online is this: “2026 is the new 2016”. The romanticization of 2016 is not new– the summer, specifically. It has been chronicled throughout the years— a nostalgia for the soft grunge fashion, reddish photo filters, and pre-short form video explosion.

Now a full decade beyond 2016, we’ve turned a new leaf, one where people are declaring 2026 will be the new 2016– with the same energy that made 2016 so memorable in collective memory. There have been a series of parallels to 2016 that have led this movement, some more serious than others. Some have pointed to the new season of Stranger Things (which premiered in 2016), Kylie Jenner reviving her 2010’s King Kylie Era for Kylie Cosmetics, and even Ariana Grande going brunette again as a sign that 2016 is officially back.

@pinkpanthcomplexcan we bring this back? 😔😔 #moodboard #fyp #fy #2016 #2026 #2015 #coldwater #jb #nickiminaj

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🎊 New Year, New Me

With a new year always comes the same content we can rely on: resolutions and manifestations for the New Year. Historically, New Year’s resolutions are usually centered around wellness goals– weight loss, healthier eating habits, etc. While we didn’t see a complete departure from the traditional goals, with the latest data from YouGov reporting the top priorities for 2026 are Exercising More (25%), Being Happy (23%), and Eating Healthier (22%), in our current world where we see growing concern over health and wellness messaging in pop culture and a desire to be more offline, it is no surprise that we are seeing more content surrounding non-traditional resolutions pick up steam as well.

How this shows up on social:

Feeds filled with New Year content is a social media tradition– from year before recaps, to in’s and out’s lists, to vision boards, to astrology predictions for the new year, users are excited to reflect and share what they hope for in a new year. The consensus is a lot of what we have been seeing throughout this year: more intentionality, self-care, and embracing individuality.

🧇 ConformityGate

When the Stranger Things finale dropped on New Year’s Day, it triggered a mass psychological event known as “Conformitygate.” Large swaths of the audience simply refused to believe the “conforming,” happy ending was real, theorizing instead that the characters were trapped in a mass illusion induced by the villain, and a secret 9th episode would drop on January 7th to reveal the “truth.”

Spoiler alert: there was no episode 9. However, that did not stop Stranger Things fans from crashing Netflix to hopefully be first to see the theory come to fruition.

Is it a harmless hopefulness for a better ending for something that is beloved, or a cultural inability to accept “The End” or a narrative as given? We have seen similar online behavior in the past, specifically with musicians like Taylor Swift or Harry Styles, where fandoms deep dive and pick apart the most minute details to find hidden meanings, easter eggs, or clues. However, this is the first we have seen of a TV show, especially one that ultimately never came to pass. And it wasn’t just a handful of superfans that bought into the conspiracy— with a Change.org petition reaching nearly 400,000 signatures in a matter of days demanding the full finale and deleted scenes be shared.

We wonder if this is simply another avenue for fans to craft deep analysis, a symptom of an increasingly hyper-personalized world, where people can use AI tools or tailor algorithms to experience a story or piece of media exactly the way they want to. If the ending doesn’t fit what they wish it was, then certainly it can’t be the “real” one… right? As we move further into this era of hyper-personalization, the real ‘mass illusion’ may not be the one on our screens, but the belief that we have the power to rewrite a story simply because we refuse to let it go.

How this shows up on social:

Regardless of why Conformitygate ran rampant online, it was unignorable. A myriad of deep dive videos, analysis, and theory swapping hit our feeds starting New Years Day.

Netflix was in a precarious situation: do we let people keep having their delusional fun, or squash speculation to mitigate further disappointment? Netflix didn’t entertain the theories, but didn’t ultimately squash the rumor until it had already reached viral fame. And yet, fans were still convinced on January 7th that they were getting a secret episode.

The fallout has been a mixed bag. People that believed were disappointed, but most have seemed to move on to what was revealed in the post-finale documentary— much of which gave them answers as to why the finale was so bad in their eyes to begin with.

What has been most confusing about the fallout of this theory is the main perpetrator of the theory who posted over 25 videos explaining and furthering belief with viewers— some amassing millions of views, walking it back after words… posting a video titled “How I fooled the Stranger Things fans into believing conformitygate” on how he never believed from the start. A strange move when trust is more important to users than ever.

@andrewsvisualCONFORMITY GATE WAS ALWAYS FAKE!! #strangerthings #strangerthings5 #movies #fyp #ifb

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Whether it’s locking our phones, or locking in to our New Year ambitions, the pulse of 2026 is defined by a deep desire for agency. We are no longer passive consumers of the digital age; we are actively negotiating our relationship with time, technology, and the narratives we consume to take back control and spend more time in the physical world. As we head further into the year, the goal isn’t just to be “online” or “offline,” but to be present in a way that, as our new motto suggests, only has to make sense to us.

As the year comes to a close, we are reliably inundated with trend reports and outlooks for 2026. From Pinterest Predicts to Colors of the Year, these forecasts are often repackaged and delivered among agencies and marketers, everyone trying to put their own spin on the same handful of expected trends.

At neuemotion, we’re tired of simply predicting the future; we’re ready to propose a better one.

We asked our team of 20+ creatives from across the agency to offer their collective POV on the most anticipated—and most necessary—shifts in content, creator strategy, and platform trends fueled by our own strategic insights and cultural analysis. Inside, the team answers the question: “If you could control the trends, what would you want to see?”

Instead of telling you what’s coming (you’ll get that everywhere else), we’re sharing our internal perspective on what we wish 2026 will bring to social media.

Ready to see the social feeds of our dreams? Let’s dive in.

📡 Digital Comforts

We have seen a building affinity toward nostalgic hobbies and aesthetics in 2025. From the proliferation of VHSthetic, the comeback of 90’s-00’s technology, and the love for nostalgic franchises leading current marketing and online trends. The next frontier will be classic entertainment formats packaged as “new” offerings. This emerging trend capitalizes on the comfort and familiarity of past media, breathing fresh life into tried-and-true structures.

A prime example: the resurgence of long-form formats. Livestreams echo the live, immediate nature of classic television broadcasts, while long-form blogging and lengthy online videos serve as modern successors to deeply engaging magazine articles or thoughtfully televised documentaries.

We have also seen this resurface in the boom of chatroom-style mediums and app-integration like Discord, Instagram’s Channels and Close Friends stories, and Substack subscriber chat– mimicking the small chatrooms that those with AOL handles in the aughts remember fondly.

The audio world is perhaps where this trend will be most pronounced. Podcasts are increasingly mimicking the structure of traditional media, leading to a revival of familiar archetypes. Director of Strategy, Caitlin Kean, perfectly captures this sentiment, stating: “[I want to see] MORE OF podcasts disguised as talk shows. Every podcast has an interviewer/guest on camera in two chairs. Let’s just revive late night tv, y’all??” The doubling-down of audio and visual content is ever present in the seemingly random addition of the Golden Globe’s “Best Podcast” category. Nominated podcast, Call Her Daddy, featuring Alex Cooper’s high-profile interviews where she gets the dirt on pop culture scandals, is the perfect example of this late-night talk show packaged as a modern entertainment platform. Similarly, TikTok’s new live podcast “TikTok in the Mix”, a 4-episode series that leans into the rise of livestreams and late-night TV podcast formats to talk to major music artists, leveraging old and fresh formats to create a new offering by the platform.

We predict the next media structure to get a revival is the radio show, reimagined and infused with modern elements, especially on the heels of streaming juggernaut ‘Stranger Things’ featuring a radio show as a prominent plot point. We foresee the classic formats and styles of radio shows—snappy flow, sound effects, music, and live broadcasts—to make an impact on the audio space, signaling a wider appetite for the sounds and structures of the past. These familiar blueprints, re-skinned for a digital-first audience, will prove to be a familiar comfort in our nostalgic pursuit.

💫 Interesting Over Influential

People yearn for a time when the internet was a place of wild possibility, connectivity, and inspiration.

We’ve seen digital detoxes become more appealing, and users continue to call for technology and entertainment of the past. There is a clear cry for help coming from the online world: the internet feels draining, and we are craving for it to be inspiring again.

When we asked our team the kind of content they want to see in 2026, the answers told a story of authenticity, specificity, and discovery that inspires, uplifts, and educates.

I want to see…

“Real people doing real things, less influencers doing influencer-y things.”

“Genuine content that sparks positive and constructive conversation, hand-created, self-typed posts, things that show effort and process. ”

“Rewilding” the web. I just miss when websites felt like places. Or that you uncovered something.”

“I always want to see more art! And highlighting people with highly niche skills.”

“I’m loving the academic curation trend and want to see more of that in 2026.”

We see this sentiment across our team and in our audience research: people are less inspired by the lifestyle and experiences of the influencers made by the platforms, and more interested in seeing the kind of people online that we are inspired by when we meet them in real life. These people have niche hobbies, they’re educators who teach something new, and creatives who open us up to new communities or modes of self-expression. We crave online experiences that break the current mold and inspire us, rather than the same trends and creators day after day.

The time people spend online is a precious resource. Brands need to prioritize not just maintaining audience attention online, but leaving a meaningful impact on audiences when they go offline. The content that will resonate with audiences this year will feel singular to that person or platform—defined by the artist with a distinct perspective, the educator with deep knowledge, and real people who offer a genuine glimpse into a life unlike our own.

🧠 Consistency over Virality

As the social landscape becomes more chaotic and hyper-crowded, one thing is becoming clearer through our research: audiences are valuing consistency over one-off viral wins. For brands, maintaining a dependable cadence of content is no longer just a best practice, it’s a differentiator. People want to know what they can expect from the brand, and they want that expectation met repeatedly.

Director of Brand Strategy, Drew Nelson, noted, “Having one-off moments is cool, but if that’s not representative of what the rest of your content looks like, then it’s more of a flash than an archive of more content to discover.” In other words, virality without consistency does little to build long-term affinity or trust.

There’s also an important distinction emerging between consistency of volume and consistency of value. This shift isn’t about maintaining an aggressive posting cadence, but about being consistent in quality, usefulness, and clarity. That viewpoint is echoed internally as well, with Creative Director Michael Olson capturing it bluntly: “I want brands to post LESS.”

This shift also reflects a growing fatigue with trend-hopping for the sake of attention. Consumers are increasingly more discerning; they’re looking for clarity, depth, and actual value; whether that’s education, product knowledge, or storytelling that reveals something meaningful about a brand. Trend-bait feels increasingly hollow in comparison. For 2026, we want to see brands treat consistency like a strategy, not an afterthought.

🚨 Shock has no Value

If 2025 was the year of pushing the limits on shock, 2026 is the year we collectively hit the brakes. “Ragebait” - content engineered to provoke anger, confusion, or divisiveness - has become one of the most fatiguing trends on social and traditional media. There’s a reason it was Oxford’s word of the year.

Whether it’s alarmist email subject lines (think faux emergencies from retail brands, hi BÉIS), “urgent” SMS blasts, or click-bait thumbnails designed purely to spark outrage, these tactics were once effective because they helped brands stand out. Now, nearly everyone is doing it, and the result is a sea of sameness that feels manipulative rather than engaging.

Across the neuemotion team, the position is clear: people are exhausted by manufactured emotional spikes. Chief Customer Officer Christina Garnett noted, “Machiavellian marketing, provocation for the sake of performance, is going out. Coming in is a focus on the real. As AI is incorporated deeper into our lives and feeds, people will seek out what they can trust: in-person events, tools to determine if content is AI generated.”

This shift is accelerated by the rise of AI and the growing difficulty in deciphering what is real, edited, or engineered to provoke. In a climate of distrust, we believe consumers will gravitate more toward creators, brands, and formats that feel grounded, human, and emotionally safe. Shock tactics may generate short-term clicks, but in 2026, trust is the long-term metric that matters.

🖼️ Aesthetics

When asked, our team is continuing to heavily favor messy, real, and retro aesthetics for 2026, but is hoping to trade the Y2K aesthetic, glitter pen aesthetics, to embrace the mid-00s scrapbook, home movie, and vintage magazine styles that are hard to replicate by AI.

Conversely, the responses seek to eliminate highly curated and synthetic visuals and overly fake AI filters. The overall sentiment is a desire for human-made, unvarnished content that mimics artful aesthetics of the past.

☎️ Where Communities are Forming

When it comes to platforms, we hope to see more prominent ones emerge for online connection and community building– defined by creativity, more freedom online, and smaller, more personable modes of communication.

Here are the top responses to the question of which platforms we expect to emerge in 2026.

✂️ Craft Over Clout

Influencers and creators continue to be some of the biggest needle-pushers for a brand’s success, or failure, but the criteria for who earns that influence is shifting quickly. Audiences are craving creators who feel real, trustworthy, and genuinely skilled at their craft. High-effort content stands out again, especially as the cost of living rises and folks relate to creators who are balancing a 9–5 while still producing thoughtful, quality work. As Director of Brand Strategy, Carlo Johnson noted, “Creators who are specialized in a unique trade or craft will be increasingly sought after and appreciated in a world where anyone can generate lazy AI content.” AI is a tool, not the star, and digital trust is becoming one of the most valuable currencies online.

We’re also seeing a growing opportunity for internal creators: founders, CEOs, and team members who become a brand’s most credible influencers. Halfdays is a standout example: co-founders Ariana Ferwerda and Kiley McKinnon’s personal content, from photoshoots and product testing to behind-the-scenes moments, has become a powerful top-of-funnel engine. This type of leadership-driven storytelling builds closeness, signals authenticity, and is often more cost-effective than traditional influencer partnerships. The comment sections reflect this clearly: audiences consistently ask for more, drawn to the feeling of being “involved” and getting a peek behind the curtain of products they genuinely use. That access creates a sense of intimacy and small-brand energy, even as the company scales. Expect more brands to lean into this model as trust, transparency, and craft continue to matter more than follower counts alone.

​​These shifts sit in sharp contrast to the fatigue around low-effort, profit-driven content: TikTok Shop hauls, endless affiliate links, and sponsored posts that feel disconnected from reality. The rise of de-influencing and “empties” culture is really a reaction to that fatigue: a push toward creators who value craft, honesty, and thoughtful storytelling over chasing commissions.

👀 Brand Accounts

Looking across platforms, one thing is clear: the most effective brand accounts aren’t chasing every trend. They’re deeply tuned into their audience, confident in their voice, and intentional about how they show up day after day.

With that in mind, here are a few brand accounts we believe are worth watching, both for inspiration and for how they’re navigating culture with clarity and consistency:

• Bratz - “They lean into both the nostalgia of Bratz and current events, it shows how tapped in they are to their audience.”

• Dropout TV - “It celebrates some of the nerdiest and classically “uncool” subjects (Dungeons & Dragons, Improv) and makes it irrefutably hilarious and engaging. Their platform is great and their social strategy is great: clipped moments from episodes and every show has its own handle so you naturally discover all sorts of content in the wild”

• Halfdays - “[They are] doing a great job of showing products in a way that feels approachable and useful but also has a vibe.”

• Merriam-Webster - “[They] stay in their lane while being funny and culturally relevant.”

• NBA - “They have always understood their fanbase and the type of content they’re looking for.”

• Nutter Butter - “It’s extremely out-of-pocket and can get away with low res graphics. It uses confusion, chaos and weird, sometimes creepy graphics to create engagement but always seems to be “made” by someone. It honestly seems to have its own community.”

• Teenageengineering – “functional cool! no fluff.”

• Tryramp - “doing a great job of balancing authoritative, technical content in a somewhat niche industry with a charming and irreverent approach that mixes things up and doesn’t take the brand too seriously.”

There you have it—our agencies take on what we hope to see come and go on socials next year: messy, human, and grounded in craftsmanship. Whatever 2026 has in store for us, we are excited to continue reporting, dissecting, and breaking it down here, every month.

Welcome to neuewave!

We are excited to conclude the year with our final monthly trend report! The internet and media landscape always takes a fun turn amidst the holiday promotions, and this last month has not disappointed. From marketing blunders to impassioned fanbases to tensions around consumption, this month was full of reminders for brands entering 2026 that trust, respect, and authenticity online are key to building and nurturing relationships with their audience.

So let’s close out the year with what we have been seeing online this month.

🧳 Brand Mistakes

We’d like to formally apologize for the distress this may cause, but the brand apology posts are causing us secondhand embarrassment. This month, the brand marketing space has been awash with posts replicating apologetic press releases that hit the grid after a brand has committed some misstep. However, when reading further to understand what crime they are admitting to, it turns out to be a marketing ploy featuring apologies for offering irresistible deals, or for selling products that work too well.

We understand the appeal, as recognizable formats stop users midscroll as they look to uncover scandal and many brands see higher than normal engagement. But when the marketing world talks extensively about the importance of authenticity, especially in the AI age where trust is more important than ever, this is a surprising choice. What is unsurprising, however, is the public response to this new clickbait, with many finding the faux press release manipulative, exhausting, and icky for misleading users and for making light of situations where brands have needed to take accountability in the past.

@xantheappleyardit is that deep!!! #fakeapology #cancelculture #accountability

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How this shows up on social:

When a trend rooted in manipulation tactics for views and clickbait makes such an impact, it emboldens a brand to take it even further. Over Black Friday weekend, luggage brand Béis sent a marketing blast with the subject line “Action required: Fraud alert.”, in promotion of an extension of their holiday sale.

The backlash was immediate, not just because the action is technically illegal under FTC guidelines, but for the panic it elicited when discovered this “fraud alert” in their inboxes. Many took to social media to call out how the brand was trying to scam or dupe their customers, and some even felt panicked after buying from their sale, thinking they had been hacked in the process.

Users are telling us a few things through their distaste for fake apologies and manufactured panic:

• Trust is the most important thing a brand can foster with its audience right now. Brands should fight for our trust, not take it for granted.

• Users are exhausted by excessive or misleading marketing tactics and crave intentionality from brands. With brand posts and ads being so pervasive in our everyday lives, quality over quantity is key to fostering a connection with your audience.

• Creativity matters more than ever, and users care about their brands telling a story—or at least providing a utility—that they can connect with. When brands lack originality or engage in the same copy-and-paste trend, users will push back.

🛍️ Consumerism Final Boss

Speaking of holiday marketing… we’ve reached our annual peak of consumption as people anticipate the gift-giving season. We have previously discussed the evolution of deinfluencing, which emerged as a direct response to consumers feeling jaded and anxious about consumerism and its environmental and economic impacts. This trend has not slowed, with many continuing to boldly reject overconsumption and capitalist culture online, citing not only the moral implications but also the ability to develop personal taste and interests outside of the consumerism cycle.

However, there seems to be an annual switch, a reliable period where the internet abandons its anti-consumerism philosophies under the pressure of giving or receiving the perfect gift. Rather than de-influencing products people shouldn’t invest in or don’t need, the internet steps into its proper influencer form to tell everyone what deserves a spot on their wish list.

How this shows up on social:

If you head to TikTok or Instagram Reels, you can pretty much find a gift guide for any person you can think of. From parents, teen boys, book lovers, pet owners, cool girls, F1 fanatics– there is a gift guide for you, filled with TikTok Shop plugs and affiliate links to guide your purchase (and add a little something extra in the creator’s stocking).

In addition to classic gift guide gurus, other trends include more manifestations and hypotheticals of what creators would ask for for Christmas if they didn’t already have it, what they will be asking for, along with crowdsourcing calls for users to fill the comments with gift ideas for them or someone specific.

In many ways, these gift guides can serve as a preview of 2026 trends, as they highlight what their favorite creators or peers will be wearing/using/doing in the coming year. While a few handmade gift guides have gone viral, the encouragement to over-consume is glaring, furthering the proliferation of people not able to develop their own style or taste, with one comment reading, “isn’t it embarrassing having to be told what you should want?”.

@superfunnyprettygirlthis is serious work people #fyp

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📹 Real-Time Experiences

Livestreaming has ascended from a niche hobby to a dominant force in digital media, fundamentally reshaping how we consume content and connect. This surge is led by platforms like Twitch, TikTok, and YouTube Live, which offer real-time, interactive experiences across gaming, news, music, and education. Furthermore, major gaming IP like Minecraft and Fortnite have profoundly shaped audience expectations by normalizing live, dynamic virtual experiences as an everyday mode of entertainment for younger generations.

The result is a rapidly scaling market: the global live streaming sector is currently valued at $113 billion and is projected to reach $161 billion by 2032.

This shift marks a pivotal move toward an authentic, immediate connection that AI and hyper-polished content cannot replicate. And this demand will only intensify as the technology continues to advance, and AI infiltrates our feeds. In a world of media and platform narratives that are increasingly influenced by algorithms and AI content, 1:1, real-time interaction is becoming one of the only ways to ensure an audience is hearing and seeing the truth.

How this shows up on social:

Driven by the demand for more unpolished, interactive, and immersive content in the AI, digitally dependent era, we have seen both celebrities being created from streaming, like Kai Cenat and Pokimane, to celebrities jumping into the streaming universe as a new way to connect with audiences. Drake has rolled out his new album via Youtube livestream, Justin Bieber has taken to Twitch to stream intimate conversations and performances, and Love Island star Jeremiah Brown has capitalized on his summertime fame by creating an online community of his own, livestreaming video games and book clubs to his followers.

🪩 Big Fans, Bigger Haters

Gone are the days of casual viewing. After a show airs or a movie releases, it is common practice to turn to the internet to gather opinions from around the world. And in a time when public discourse and criticism can be shared online, the most devoted powerwatchers of a show, franchise, or creator have simultaneously become the biggest critics of the content they love.

This phenomenon is tricky to nail down; perhaps it’s because admitting sincere enthusiasm makes users a more vulnerable target, with the cost of defending something being higher than attacking it, or maybe fans might lean into hyper-criticism and nitpicking as a way to flex their intelligence and critical eye, figuring that tearing something apart looks smarter than simply enjoying it. Whatever the motivation, this hunger for public approval has created a dynamic in which the strongest affinity for a show fuels immediate, often intense, online criticism. After all, shared public rage is a potent engagement tool and connective anchor within a fanbase.

From reality competition shows like The Great British Baking Show, Dancing with the Stars, and Survivor to cultural phenomena like the latest Wicked adaptation, a substantial portion of the discourse revolves around what fans hate, find wrong, or deem outright insulting. Whether it’s the rage-posting about a judge’s score, the feeling of a favorite contestant being “robbed,” or even pointed criticism about production choices, this collective online dissatisfaction is now an integral part of the consumption experience.

How this shows up on social:

This phenomenon translates directly into high-volume, high-emotion social media activity that often outpaces the official content itself. Dedicated fans who feel slighted—whether by an unexpected elimination on Dancing with the Stars or perceived poor costume design in the Wicked movie—immediately convert their frustration into viral rage-posts and a wave of pointed parodies that target everything from the structure and contestants of current Survivor seasons, or perceived poor costume design in Wicked: For Good.

In extreme cases, fan outrage can force real-world reactions from adjacent media, exemplified by the DWTS controversy, where podcaster Alex Cooper hosted an exclusive livestream (!) for the eliminated Whitney Leavitt and her partner to perform their final dance.

@callherdaddyThe final dance. Premiering Wednesday 8pm ET. @YouTube @Dancing with the Stars #DWTS

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While this audience is split on whether this was tacky or not, it illustrates that the energy of the most passionate fans can be a double-edged sword. Their deep investment ensures viral attention, but it also means they feel entitled to voice their disappointment in the most unfiltered, tactless way, making outrage content a key signifier of their investment and desires.

This month’s trends reveal a central conflict that is defining the consumer and content landscape: the growing tension between trust and transparency in a digitally saturated world.

We are seeing cultural whiplash as audiences push back against manipulative marketing and over-consumerism, yearning for brands that earn their trust rather than take it for granted.

Ultimately, this highlights a new demand from the modern consumer: not just more content, but an authentic relationship with the brands, creators, and entertainment they consume. The internet is asking its gatekeepers to drop the clickbait, embrace the unpolished, and respect the audience that consumes their content—or face the collective fury of their most devoted users.

We all know how a trend starts, and we all know the exact moment it dies.

A creator—most of the time a small creator—makes something cool, engaging, and interesting.

Internet users instantly love it and want to make the it their own.

Fire catches, the trending format, feature, or phrase has now permeated swaths of feeds.

Then… a brand does it.

….

Something that felt novel and connective has been commandeered and watered down to sell you something.

The first few to do it are usually met positively, with comments full of “your marketing team needs a raise!” for their swiftness.

But then, so many brands and entities jump into the trend that it begins to leave a sour taste in the mouth of the internet. A cynical groan replaces the simple joy.

The bitterness leads everyone to abandon it. Anyone doing it after we have publicly discarded it now being seen? At best: late to the game. At worst: cringeworthy.

The original creator is abandoned with whiplash in the carnage as the next trend begins to take form, and so the cycle begins again.

The real danger for brands is not missing the trend, but misjudging the exact moment their involvement turns from being a welcome connective vehicle to their community, to a misstep that leads audiences to side-eye their brand. The decision to participate has become a high-stakes gamble..

Brands Have to Keep Up

For brands, the pressure to keep up with social trends and cultural moments is all too real. The 2025 Sprout Social Index found that 93% of consumers believe it’s important for brands to keep up with online culture. This expectation creates immense pressure to be “in the know”, and quickly rising trends are seen as the perfect vehicle to demonstrate this cultural cachet. The brand’s desire to participate in culture quickly clashes with the consumer’s desire for that culture to remain authentic and untainted by the business world.

The “Group 7” meme/movement this fall is a case study in brands responding to the pressures of quickly rising trends without tapping into the real meaning of the trend to begin with.

From musician and creator Sophia James, The Group 7 phenomenon relates to a series of posts in which James meant to test how users were seeing her content, organizing them into batches or group numbers for easy identification. While all of her “groups” of content have now surpassed a million views, Group 7’s video became the biggest hit, with over 84 million views and counting. The camaraderie and engineered social status associated with being in the “winning” Group 7 created a ripple effect permeating content and comments alike.

Many assumed that by jumping on the trend carousel, they could show their online cultural awareness. If everyone is talking about Group 7, why don’t I, Jersey Mikes, also talk about Group 7? But trends are merely a part of online culture, not the whole thing, and simply contributing to trends without the larger cultural context is where a trend can go from being fun, to toppling the tipping point that leads to the eyerolls and abandonment.

... But it’s Just So Embarrassing

Just because consumers expect some level of participation doesn’t mean they always like all participation. While brands are encouraged to keep up with online culture, a third of consumers think it is embarrassing when a brand actually does it. The joys of being part of Group 7 quickly turned into a familiar, cringey feeling we get when brands try to wade into any social movement they don’t belong in. To the brand, they think they are connecting themselves to a cultural moment, but to users, it feels like they’re infiltrating something special and connective that they didn’t understand in the first place (cue the aforementioned cynical groan).

The embarrassment users feel for brands comes when the perceived awareness of the brand falters. It’s projected onto brands when, in an attempt to demonstrate their cultural awareness, they miss the boat or the point altogether. This doesn’t make users feel connected to your brand; it makes your brand appear as though it’s trying too hard and failing spectacularly.

What Tips the Scale?

How do we identify this tipping point? Where does it begin? Somewhere between the timing, the trend, and your brand lies the answer.

The lifespan of a trending moment is very real, and very short. When asked if they like when a brand participates in online trends, 27% of participants said that they only feel it is effective when it is done within 24-48 hours of the trend’s creation. Urgency is essential. But as always, there is nuance.

The intention of a trend can influence its effectiveness window. Naturally, humor is all about timing– jump into a funny trend too late, and the cringe is unanimously felt. However, some of the more wholesome or inspirational trends, such as the “this and…” format, have become more evergreen formats that can live a longer lifespan, while larger cultural moments that create viral trends, like the many that came from Love Island this summer, can live longer than that 48-hour window. However, whenever a brand jumps in when the trend feels like it has passed, it will always evoke the collective cringe, regardless of the genre. This means knowing how and when your audience is interacting with it can be your north star to determine your own participation.

A trending moment’s lifespan is also tied to its authenticity—not just how real it feels to those jumping in, but to the content itself. When a trend gets recycled too many times, or worse, strays so far from its roots that its original audience can’t recognize it, it risks becoming completely meaningless. It gets watered down by sheer repetition and an ever-widening circle of users who are too far removed from the spark that started it all.

We saw this play out with the “I met my younger self for coffee” trend earlier this year. It was started by a poet and digital creator as a heartfelt way to promote their new book. A small, growing niche of writers and online romanticizers felt instantly inspired, writing their own moving versions of the poem. Yet, as the trend grew and was shared outside of this close-knit circle, the original, vulnerable intention began to fade. The format remained intact, but the content became something else entirely. Once bigger influencers used it simply to promote their platforms, or when creators injected dark or overly humorous twists, the trend hit its tipping point—leading to its swift and total abandonment by the online community.

Once a piece of content or behavior crosses the boundary of its original audience, the trend begins to lose its specific meaning and context that made it impactful in the first place. This moment is when the trend is most susceptible to being co-opted or diluted, especially when commercial brands participate.

Certain trends lend themselves well to brand participation, but the brand’s established identity and their audience is the most important indicator on whether it will help propel the trend on, or tip its scales to the point of no return. When a brand’s participation respects the trend’s original context and aligns with their established audience—such as Duolingo using cultural moments to provide character-driven, absurd content to connect with their dedicated audience, or Beis using trends as a vehicle for their established aspirational travel aesthetics—it doesn’t tip the scales. Rather, it validates and amplifies the trend (and the brand’s cultural position) because it is additive to the content their audience already knows and loves. Conversely, when a brand jumps into a trend that originated from a cultural context far removed from its own, it leaves everyone feeling like the brand has arrived at a cultural event to which it was never invited.

To Participate, or not to Participate…

Ultimately, a brand must walk a painfully thin line: it seeks the glow of cultural relevance without being perceived as an intruder attempting to hijack the connective tissue of trends that bridge the gaps of online communities.

The issue isn’t whether brands should engage, but how and when. This means engagement cannot be impulsive, but strategic: taking stock of a trend’s origins, tracking its place in the life cycle, and assessing its alignment with your brand’s identity and voice. This crucial step determines everything. By doing your homework, you ensure your participation in the right trends acts as a validation to the community; fail to do so, and your brand risks becoming an unintentional perpetuator of the trend tipping point—the moment the internet decides you’ve taken too much, and thus abandons it, and you, altogether.

Welcome to neuewave!

It’s been a month of non-stop celebration at neuemotion. From turning our agency’s second birthday party into a science-backed, case study (“Building a 2nd Birthday: A B2B Case Study”), and Toast’s “It’s The Little Things” Campaign being selected as a finalist for the Shorty Impact Awards in not just one, but two categories, we’re coming into the end of the year on a high note.

But among the celebrations, we have still been tapped into internet culture and the many trends that have arisen with it. As we look across the internet landscape as it responds to chaos of the world, the trends we have seen have outlined an even bigger story around context. Not just how important it is to understanding the world, but how it’s become a cultural currency in it’s own right in building connections and trust that feel human. This month, we explore four cultural shifts and how they are reasserting the value of the genuine human experience through shared context.

Let’s dive in.

🔢 Numerical Memes…

Every digital generation has a collection of memes and online jokes that define them. From “damn daniel” to “I just lost the game”, these connective, comedic tissues have become a way for generations to find identity and community among those who uniquely “get it”, accompanied by a sense of pride when outsiders don’t “get” it. However, as Gen Z and Gen Alpha become a digital generation, the next generation’s inside jokes are a variety of numerical memes and jokes that have left older generations both annoyed and confused– as nature intended.

The slang that has found its way into nearly every conversation, every exchange of words, every response to a question in which children as young as elementary age are involved, is the prime example of how these numerical memes are beginning to take hold. While the adults catching on to the 6-7 meme might inevitably kill it altogether, Millennials and Gen X are feeling left out enough of the new lingo to seek out explainer videos, yet still reject the phrase for its pointlessness. But regardless of its point—or lack thereof, it still serves as a cultural force for youth to form community and connection, just as “what are thoooose” did for generations past.

@livy.lou11#drafts #fyp #spam#sixseven

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Even if it’s a nonsense term, if they seem to know what it means, then it’s function as a generational connector that allows the younger generation to distinguish themselves among the broader culture has served an important purpose. And its importance can’t be ignored, Dictionary.com just named “6-7” as “word” of the year for 2025, citing both its widespread usage and how it has influenced culture over the last year. And no, a number being named word of the year is something we’re not ready to discuss yet…

How this shows up on social:

While 6-7 has undoubtedly taken over social, another recent numerical meme—being in “Group 7”—originated overnight after rising Gen Z musician, Sophie James organized her content into groups to easily identify who was seeing her content While all of her “groups” have now surpassed a million views, Group 7’s video garnered the most views, creating a ripple effect through Instagram and TikTok, people bonding over their Group 7 superiority and camaraderie. Brands, users, and celebrities alike jumped into the phenomenon, including DWTS pros and contestants—who we know are driving a cultural renaissance among Gen Z on their own.

Brands should prepare: as slang continues to evolve with new generations, there will always be pressure to adapt and show that they speak their language. At a minimum, brands should ensure they understand the origins/what the meme means before jumping into the conversation, as understanding the context is crucial to ensuring it hits with the younger generation.

🎨 Creativity Demands Context

The public reaction to AI and its increasing use in creative industries is inspiring a new behavior: audiences are championing behind-the-scenes content that adds context to how viral creative is made. This has been a growing trend in consumer goods for many months now, as the rise of fast fashion and mass-production has inspired consumers to celebrate human craftsmanship more than ever. Fashion house Loewe has responded to this not just by showcasing their products, but showing real people making their products, centering craftsmanship, human connection, and slow production as the star of their content.

With the rise of generative AI and creativity being offloaded to online tools, the value of creative, handmade work is more important than ever before, and consumers continue to be interested not in just the output, but the context of the creative process. How was this made? Who worked on it? What methods were used to create these visuals or effects? As AI becomes increasingly difficult for consumers to identify, leading with the context and effort behind the creativity sets brands apart, emphasizing transparency and trust for their users.

How this shows up on social:

AppleTV has been celebrated for their new “animated” title card after they revealed it was created with practical effects and cameras – no AI to be found. In a 30 second video documenting the process, props, and people behind the camera, it was clear that the provided context of how the visual was created feda broader public desire for human craftsmanship. One comment read, “In an era of heavy CGI and AI holiday ads, choosing a practical, in-camera approach is a statement. It’s creativity grounded in craftsmanship.”

This reaction is similar to the breath of fresh air consumers felt for 2024 films Heretic, which slammed generative AI use in the closing credits, and Wicked, who prioritized practical effects to create the onscreen magic; all telling of the continued desire for the context surrounding creative work in the AI-era.

♟️Community Celebrity Hobby Groups

From book clubs, to knitting, to board games, to run clubs, there has been a well-documented boom in hobby adoption and communities as a way for people to connect with others and unplug.

In a post-pandemic world where we all learned the vital importance of human connection, coupled with increasing socioeconomic stressors, the desire to put phones down and pick up a hobby that feels purposeful and connective has led to users having more fulfilling offline lives and communities.

However, for a generation that remains thoroughly online, the very real presence of parasocial relationships with celebrities and creators they love remains paramount, with social media constantly serving as a platform for intimate access.

There is now a growing shift in bridging this gap, where fans are looping their authentic, purposeful offline interests into their public digital identities, creating a critical intersection where celebrities are now beginning to use shared hobbies as a new mode of connection. We have seen this play out for a long time through celebrity book clubs, with Dua Lipa, Reese Witherspoon, Kaia Gerber, Noname, and many more having long-standing book clubs that they use to connect with fans through a shared hobby. Similarly, we have seen fans turn to people like Ella Emhoff and Tom Daley, not for their skills that made them famous, but for their love of crafting.

But now we are seeing a profound shift in what it means to be a “fan,” by shifting the relationship beyond simple admiration of a star’s creative work and toward a sense of genuine connection through a shared affinity.

How this shows up on social:

Today’s fan culture is evolving from “I like this celebrity” to “we share the same passions”, and this month there has been clear examples of how beloved icons are actively involving their fans in hobby-centric moments to create connection.

This month, Diplo turned his fitness routine and love for running into a communal experience with his run clubs, inviting physical participation and decentralized community building among his global following, with his most recent running event attracting 13,000 runners to sweat with him.

And, perhaps the most telling example of how hobby culture has been used as a mode of conenction with fans is Faye Webster’s annual Invitational that was held in Atlanta this October. The Invitational was multi-event gathering centered around her niche passions, which includes a competitive yo-yo showcase, liveball tennis tournament, and a chess tournament. Oh, and not only did Faye Webster herself compete in the games, Tyler the Creator, among other celebrities, attended to play in the chess tournament amongst fans, blurring the lines between celebrity and community building through shared hobbies.

🤷‍♀️ Public Apathy

There is a freedom in not caring. In our world, where there is so much to care and worry about, the desire to be carefree and unbothered is now replacing the previously romanticized narratives we have seen on social media through trend formats like the “almost forgot this was the whole point” or “this and…” that typically showcase the beautiful or magical moments that make life better.

However, showcasing everything to be positive or whimsical has seemed to hit it’s breaking point on social media. The resulting apathy isn’t true nihilism; it is self-preservation. When every scroll delivers a fresh disaster—be it social, political, environmental, or economic—the human psyche reaches a saturation point where “toxic positivity” becomes unhelpful and unrelatable for many. So, instead of saying “life is beautiful and everything is happy,” users are opting for trends that say “life is chaotic, and scary, so stop overthinking and enjoy what you can.” A more relatable and realistic response that meets users where they are at.

How this shows up on social:

Recent trends have been pointing to a narrative that the real beauty is choosing not caring so much about things that aren’t worth it. Similar to the “almost forgot this was the whole point”, it’s newer, more apathetic counterpart, “girl whatever” has become the new copy over the top of serene, simple moments, a more nuanced call to action from users to just say whatever to stressors and focus on the simple joys of life.

A different but similar trend that has this energy has been the “sometimes you just have to read the text and move on”, where users reveal surprising, upsetting, or darkly humorous texts they have received, but taking back their own power by letting it roll off their back so they can move forward. While both trends mimic a recognizable content format, the shifting tone we are seeing across every iteration is telling of a wider public attitude toward finding peace in the chaos.

@sabrinewaitkuscan’t come to the phone right now xoxo

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In an era defined by AI-generated visuals, endless information, and global chaos, context has become the new king. It is what allows users to forge communities through new language, provides audiences with the proof of humanity they crave, and lets consumers build deeper connections through shared, tangible passions.

Users are hunting for deeper meaning and understanding, and it is a call for brands to embrace the human touch, celebrate shared experiences, and seek out the context of what connects with audience today. Those who provide depth—who show how they’re made, why they matter, and who is behind the work—will be the ones who successfully convert cultural currency into genuine human connection that leads to lasting trust.

Welcome to neuewave!

Welcome to the October edition of neuewave: maybe the only trend report this month that won’t cover Taylor Swift.

Are we experiencing a collective déjà vu right now? No! Taylor Swift has once again created an intense public discourse that is hard to ignore. However, we will set that aside for a moment to discuss a number of other topics we think people should be talking more about, and what emerging trends are revealing about our evolving culture.

Before we dive in, did you know that neuemotion turns 2 years old this month? October 17th to be exact! And, yes, we are throwing a party. We can’t reveal the details just yet, but be sure to follow us on LinkedIn to stay updated on the celebration – you won’t want to miss it.

Let’s dive in.

👛 The Modern Heirloom

There was a time, not so long ago, when people made purchases and chose gifts with future generations in mind. Items weren’t just functional; they were intended to become beloved heirlooms, meant to last and be passed down through the generations. From furniture to clothing, to jewelry, and collectables, things were bought with a keen eye for intention and craftsmanship—investments in a legacy and a tangible way to keep family ties close over time.

However, in our current age of convenience, mass production, and the ability to quickly toss and replace items as they cycle in and out of style, treasured heirlooms are rare. Add to this the increasing economic distress and natural disasters that may have caused families to lose legacy pieces, and you’re left with the modern reality: younger generations have few, if any, substantial heirlooms to inherit or acquire for their own future families. No one is holding on to their IKEA dresser for their grandchild, nor are they passing down a collection of fast-fashion clothing (if they could even survive that long).

As younger generations become aware of this reality, there is a growing interest to reclaim the tradition of legacy and heirlooms. In a sea of disposable goods, Gen Z and Millennials are prioritizing items with timeless craftsmanship that can become modern heirlooms, whether through pottery to create pieces for future children, thrifting well-crafted vintage clothing made to last, or rising trends in choosing a classic, secondhand wedding dress to let someone’s heirloom live on.

Brands are beginning to catch on to this trend. Gap, capitalizing on its viral appeal with Gen Z after the KATSEYE denim campaign, recently launched a second denim campaign, this time centered on timeless, generational style, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and her daughter, Apple Martin. The campaign reflects how clothing moves through time, is passed down, and becomes personal. Similarly, the Gen Z-beloved brand Alo Yoga is stepping into the luxury circuit with a message that its new bag is “more than just a bag, it’s an heirloom.“ Regardless of the controversy surrounding that specific campaign, the overt strategy of marketing products as future heirlooms to a younger audience is a telling sign of this mindset shift.

How this shows up on social:

Contrasting the amount of content around investing in items made to last and passing down inherited pieces, there’s a more controversial example of capturing and passing down meaningful memories:Gen Z’s interest in generational legacy through the recent AI family polaroid trend. Users upload photos of themselves or others in their family as children, prompting AI to create photos of them with a deceased loved one, manufacturing a special moment that spans generations. While the trend sparked debate about its ethics and taste, its popularity is a telling sign of the deep and often emotional way this generation is prioritizing legacy.

☕️ AI’s Trust Campaign

It is impossible to ignore the escalating presence of AI in our daily lives—a presence often met with palpable consumer distrust and pushback. We have documented this growing skepticism over the past months, noting the lack of meaningful attempts from AI companies to build trust and meet consumers where they are—until now. This month, AI giants OpenAI and Anthropic have both made significant efforts to put these fears to rest, using marketing campaigns that reframe their products as tools to empower and enhance daily life, rather than replace or remove users from it.

ChatGPT’s campaign centers around the product and its use cases, showing how everyday users are able to use it to enhance moments they have in real life, from fitness to cooking for a first date. With an accompanying OOH campaign that invites people into the connective moments that ChatGPT enables, the creative aims to dispel fears of isolation and human replacement, centering the user as a hero.

Anthropic’s campaign, “Keep Thinking,” similarly addresses concerns about the erosion of original thought. It positions its product, Claude, as a solution and a partner for complex challenges, not a substitute for critical thinking. As part of this multi-channel push, Anthropic launched a pop-up coffee shop in NYC, offering free coffee and a “thinking” cap. Leaning into the cultural importance of coffee shops as hubs for connection and focus, they have drawn lines around the block since their opening.

Notably, both OpenAI and Anthropic are also working to gain public approval and build trust through an unexpected, structural route: they have commissioned each other’s platforms, ChatGPT and Claude, to perform safety and evaluation checks on one another. We won’t summarize here what it found (but recommend the read), but it is a clear, if unexpected, attempt to foster greater public confidence in AI safety.

How this shows up on social:

While the long queue outside Anthropic’s pop-up may seem like a victory for public sentiment, a deeper vein of distrust still runs through online conversation, where users continue to poke fun at those who embrace generative AI. In fact, just as ChatGPT launches its campaign to promote connection, the vast majority of online discourse is dominated by the terrifying realism of OpenAI’s new Sora video product. This technology, with its uncanny ability to blur the line between fabricated and factual, has instantly reignited profound fears about AI’s societal implications. One step forward, two steps back.

@chelseaexplainsitallCan you tell if this video is real? #ai #sora #password #privacy

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🪩 Content Creators to Franchise Revivers

With television ratings continuing their year-over-year decline, the imperative for networks to evolve and capture the elusive, younger, online audience has never been more crucial. Dancing with the Stars has emerged as the unlikely poster child for this relevance revival. Though the ballroom dancing competition was once a primetime staple of the late 2000s and early 2010s, its popularity and viewership gradually faded, leaving it widely considered a show for an older demographic. However, a series of smart and risky casting decisions, along with a significant focus on social media creators and marketing, has led to a surge in viewership, most notably this season’s highest viewership, which was for the themed “TikTok Night”.

@officialdwtsAlix Earle and pro Val Chmerkovskiy perform a Quickstep to Pop Muzik by M / Robin Scott. #TikTokNight #DWTS

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The undeniable pivot to prioritize online culture has revived the previously dying franchise, and many other reality shows are beginning to follow suit. Survivor has regained some popularity with younger audiences and has notably attempted to pull even more by having a streamer on the most recent season, and CBS posted a YouTube video featuring eight content creators who got to play Survivor for 36 hours. Additionally, The Bachelor has tapped content creator and reality star, Taylor Frankie Paul, to be their next lead, a clear pivot to attract a younger audience.

How this shows up on social:

If you aren’t on DWTS-Tok, then what are you doing? In all seriousness, there has been a huge surge on social media of content focusing on the show– whether it’s the dancers as content creators in their own right, the stars posting with their partners, or content coming from the official DWTS account. In fact, “DWTS” has 209.5K videos on TikTok alone, and users are taking to their socials to dissect the show, give predictions, and even provide lore to new viewers, using second screens to breathe new life into the show.

🐻 Escapism turns to Nature

The affinity we have for escapism and the growing desire for digital detoxes have fused in the last month. At the beginning of the summer, we discussed digital detoxes and how this desire to step away from technology led to an increased yearning for nature, with people turning to more outdoor-oriented hobbies and activities that influence social content.

This outdoor affinity has now evolved further, channeling the public’s craving for compelling stories and escapism into the culmination of Fat Bear Week’s popularity. If you aren’t familiar, Fat Bear Week is a week-long online contest held by Katmai National Park in Alaska, where viewers vote over the internet for the bear that appears to have gained the most weight within the park. While this competition has gone on since 2014, this year’s was the biggest Fat Bear Week to date, with nearly 100,000 online votes cast for the winner, Chunk, and a ton of social content online.

How this shows up on social:

It is no accident that Fat Bear Week captured so much attention this year. The contest offered everything: whimsy, escapism, compelling stories, dramatic rivalries, and the history of triumphs and tribulations the bears have faced. The coverage and stories of the bears’ histories captured the audience’s attention, with plenty of help from the official TikTok page, which used viral sounds and formats to chronicle the competition and create buzz. In a time when social media feels overwhelming and the world is in a state of flux, the unity and joy viewers experience from Fat Bear Week shows just how powerful escapism and newfound connections to nature can be.

@cbsmorningsCongratulations to Chunk, who was officially crowned the winner of Fat Bear Week, after two years of coming in second place. Despite a broken jaw bone, Chunk won over the hearts of voters, ending at an estimated weight of 1,200 pounds. #fatbearweek #bears

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Looking across these cultural moments, a resounding theme of a positive legacy and assurance of long-lasting traditions is emerging. Perhaps the fall season makes people more sentimental, but in an age defined by uncertainty and disposable goods, consumers are intentionally seeking out continuity and enduring meaning—responding to AI pressure with a tightening grip on original thought and humanity, revitalizing classic TV franchises by integrating new generations, and even manufacturing digital connections to past relatives. These trends represent a collective, intentional effort to anchor modern life in a sense of history, care, and the precious reassurance of something that lasts.

Welcome to neuewave!

Welcome to the September edition of neuewave: maybe the only trend report this month that won’t cover Taylor Swift.

In all seriousness, while Taylor’s various announcements have created some of the most viral moments we’ve seen in a long time, there are a variety of other exciting trends and cultural shifts to dive into, some that build on top of topics we have been exploring around desires for escapism and hypercurated connection.

So let’s round out the summer with what we have been seeing online this month.

👖 Denim Wars

Denim campaigns are having a moment, and not just because it's back-to-school season. The current surge of denim ads has become an all-out showdown, with the public weighing in on what works and what doesn't.

When Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle campaign appeared on our collective screens a month ago, the backlash was unlike anything we have seen recently, becoming a contender for the next ad industry's Kendall Jenner x Pepsi commercial (iykyk).

While it was most likely coincidental that many major clothing brands centered celebrities and creators in their denim campaigns this month, the public has watched these campaigns unfold as if they were direct responses to each other, creating a viral debate that extends beyond which pair of jeans is superior.

Nevermind that denim ads typically run at the end of summer/beginning of fall months—or the months planning these kind of campaigns require—GAP, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Lucky Brand released campaigns that viewers are seeing as “clapbacks” to the American Eagle campaign, providing a case study in how timing, the right talent, and the right (or wrong) message can resonate to create a viral moment.

No brand has benefited from this more than GAP, with their denim campaign featuring girl group KATSEYE generating 20 million views in its first three days. While the ad itself is well done, the comments reveal a major reason for its success: its stark contrast to American Eagle's controversial campaign.

How this shows up on social:

While TikTok was known for dance trends a few years ago, these days, it is relatively rare for one to truly permeate the algorithm. However, the GAP x KATSEYE campaign has become a widespread online phenomenon, with thousands of videos of people dissecting the video, reacting to the video, and mimicking the choreography on their own channels.

@yahirposts#katseye #katseyegap #fyp #yahirposts #irvinespectrum

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🗣️ Commentary Content

The comment section has always been a place for conversation, but it has evolved into a space for content in its own right. It can be the most revealing part of a post, becoming the place to go when seeking to understand public opinion, current debates, digital subcultures, and even what people find funny. While our feeds are an endless stream of videos and images, the comments have become a secondary source of information—and sometimes: the main event. On rare occasions, a video goes viral because of its comments, forget the content itself.

This change is accelerating, with several trending formats allowing the comment section to be the primary content. The original post serves as a gateway to the conversation, setting the topic for the discussion that follows. While this shift requires passive content consumers to put in extra effort and answer a call-to-action to intertwine with the content themselves, it seems that this is part of the appeal, creating a serendipitous microcommunity that can engage in a discussion and then just as easily disperse.

How this shows up on social:

The impulse to “run to the comments” has created a new genre of content formats that have taken off lately, where people post videos with text asking for the comment section to be flooded with recommendations, stories, reviews, etc. From “what shoe are we all wearing” to “I’m bored, tell me your most unhinged ___” to “help me pick my next read/show”, the comments becoming the main event has quickly become a common engagement tactic on our feeds, and the conduit to spontaneous connection.

@em.heinenAre we entering a 2025 recession? Lmk. #creatorsearchinsights #moneysavingtips #moneysaving #coffee #unhingedtok

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🎧 Return of Music as a Social Medium

At this point, I think we should add a section called "What old/analog medium is making its comeback this month?" We've already explored how the AI revolution has led to an affinity for analog mediums and "VHSthetic," and music seems like the obvious next frontier.

Since music consumption has primarily shifted to streaming services, the old art of creating curated mixtapes for your crush and storing burned CD albums under the passenger seat has become a lost art. People have become more focused on curating their own digital music libraries on streaming services, which has transformed playlist creation from a shared activity into a personal one.

In the spirit of Spotify Wrapped, there continues to be an interest in the knowledge of and data around what people listen to. Having access to someone’s streaming habits is a unique lens into their personality and tastes. This is what made the Panama Playlists so intriguing to the public when it was anonymously published this summer– giving a unique perspective on public figures, claiming “The Panama Papers revealed hidden bank accounts. This reveals hidden tastes.”

How this shows up on social:

Recently, we have seen this come to the forefront of pop culture in new ways, with director James Gunn sharing a collection of playlists he made for his new Superman film, curating the vibe for his interpretation of each character from his own personal Spotify account. This playlist collection stands apart from the movie soundtrack as a unique marketing technique for a film release that we haven’t seen before, and brings a personal connection between the director, the characters, and the fans.

And it has even gotten more personal, with Talking Heads frontman David Byrne sharing his personal wedding playlist publicly on his Instagram account, writing, “I’m getting married this week and made an almost entirely instrumental playlist while our guests eat an amazing and spicy dinner,” and spoke in depth about the choices he made when creating the playlist on his stories.

When you consider how Spotify Wrapped remains one of the biggest social days of the year, there is a clear desire for personalized music curation and individual tastes to be shared, discussed, and dissected. So, when Spotify announced recently that they are going to be introducing a direct message feature for users to share and send playlists, artist recommendations, and loved audiobooks directly in-app, it revived that nostalgic feeling of sharing a CD or cassette tape with your friend into the digital world, reigniting music as a shared medium of connection.

🌊The Summer I Took Over the Internet

When one summer drama ends, another begins. After the reality drama of “Love Island” took the internet by storm, now enters a scripted drama with a similar impact.

“The Summer I Turned Pretty” has pierced the cultural zeitgeist in a way that few young adult series have managed in recent years, with the first two episodes of season 3 seeing a 40% spike in viewership compared to the season 2 premiere. Since, it has become the most-watched season of television among women 18-34, and it’s the 5th most-watched returning season on Prime Video globally.

“The Summer I Turned Pretty” has done what few other series can do, inspiring both surface level trends and more serious lines of discourse around human behavior and relationships online. Similarly to how “Love Island” granted the world an outlet to both escape from the world while simultaneously connect with it, “The Summer I Turned Pretty” has clearly become a mainstay in social discourse as the summer comes to a close, even if mental health professionals are worried about the fandom.

How this shows up on social:

We have seen this show permeate both surface-level trends, and deeper discourses. From “The Summer I..” trend, where users fill in the rest of the sentence with serious or unserious things they have done over the summer, to brands like Duolingo, Cosmopolitan, and even FC Barcelona getting in on the discourse. When you click in deeper, there is no shortage of content deeply analyzing the complex dynamics between the characters, to what your favored character says about who you are.

@maeflowa1 year post grad and I’m still not ready #9to5 #corporatelife #summeriturnedpretty #work #netflix

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The most chronically online thing we have seen is EF Ultimate Break’s recent campaign that takes the Viral Lookalike Contest to new levels, launching a contest for a free trip to Paris for the person who is the closest lookalike to Conrad Fisher, one of the beloved brothers from the show. If this intrigues you then you’re in luck, because three to five finalists will be put up for a public vote on EF Ultimate Break’s social platforms, so everyone can get a say in the winner.

The internet becomes less of a modality for escapism and moreso the culture we live in every day. Just as quickly as we dive down internet rabbit holes and run to comment sections, we are eagerly running to discuss internet culture and information in real life. The task at hand is now trying to figure out how we fulfill our escapist desires without losing our connection to the world. Though these impulses are seemingly in conflict, we are finding a solution in the rise of hyper-niche interests and ephemeral online communities that offer easy connection points, allowing us to seamlessly click in and out of our chosen worlds.

Welcome to neuewave!

August is upon us, and as we look at the content landscape of the last few weeks, the themes we've been following are reaching a critical point. The tension between the raw, human messiness we crave and the manufactured world we're entering is growing more intense. People are no longer just searching for a moment of release; they are actively working to take back control and create it for themselves. Yet, in the middle of this all, we are still finding time to collectively laugh and connect over Jet2 holidays and the balancing acts of the Nicki Minaj challenge.

Speaking of collective connection, the neuemotion team is gearing up for our annual creative retreat! We'll be stepping away from the daily grind to reconnect, explore new ideas, and lay the groundwork for some exciting new projects. We can’t wait to be all together irl—so be on the lookout for special content coming out of that in the near future.

🧚‍♀️ Whimsy-core

There may not be a song of the summer for 2025, but there is undoubtedly a word of the summer:

whimsy.

What the New York Times nearly named the “Vibe of 2025” has exploded online this summer, from whimsical daily habits and aesthetics to whimsy-focused content creators and discourse around what whimsy even is.

Where we have talked about people romanticizing life’s small moments and main character syndrome taking over, coupled with the rise of kidulting and hobby clubs in recent years, the new fascination with pursuing a whimsical life feels like a natural progression, infusing joy, play, and gratitude into a new practice that makes life more wonder-filled.

Google searches for ‘whimsical’ or ‘whimsy’ has nearly doubled in the last five years, and content feeds and comment sections are full of declarations, tips, and rituals to making life more whimsical, from deploying a bubble gun out your window in traffic, to board game clubs, to reframing “looking for something you lost” to “treasure hunt”.

How this shows up on social:

The first instance of the “how are we making our lives more whimsical" video accrued over 8 million views, with 62,000 comments of people giving their little ways they pursue a more whimsical life. And since then? Nearly 400k videos of whimsical pursuits have hit TikTok.

While it all seems joyful and wholesome, there is a discourse brewing that has the potential to turn people off altogether. Can you actually pursue whimsy, or must it be organic to who you are? A content creator who tried to discern between “true whimsy” and “manufactured whimsy” has garnered some heat in the comments, accused of trying to gatekeep what can be whimsical and what can’t: one comment reads “Defining whimsy is not true whimsy”. Not just here, but other discourses around whether it is okay to have to look up whimsical behavior have started to surface, and may continue to persist until the word “whimsy” is so overused that it disappears altogether - like it probably has for you in the course of reading this section (semantic satiation is real y’all). Time will tell.

@christianna_jReplying to @korama true whimsy vs manufactured whimsy from a hater. hope this helps!

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🏟️ Trading Card Craze

Trading cards, playing cards, card games… there is a serious market for those who love this physical medium. The trading card game (TCG’s) market has been rapidly rising in the last few years, and is predicted to hit $11.8 Billion by 2030, fueled by childhood nostalgia and the love for collectibles.

Pokémon and One Piece have become their own force in the trading card market, with Fast Company reporting that Pokémon has surged 20% in value earlier this year, and is expected to continue. Card shops across the country, and even Costco, have had to limit purchasing to one product per customer during major Pokémon set drops. The trading card market is maybe the closest thing to the old Best Buy Black Friday brawls we used to witness online, with viral videos of people swarming product displays looking to get their hands on the latest drop.

One Piece is no exception; the major anime-turned-TCG is growing rapidly in popularity and pulling major brand collaborations, such as Dodger Stadium hosting a One Piece Night with merch and limited edition cards, and repeated collabs with Burger King that include a limited meal and merch. Considering Netflix has recently dropped a report talking about the rise of anime popularity, with over half of households on their platform now streaming anime content, interest in anime-based TCGs will only continue to grow (to the inevitable dismay of the hardcore fanbase).

@burgerkingnzAhoy Straw Hat Crew. Ready to become King of the Burger Pirates? Set sail to BK and claim your limited edition One Piece T-shirt with every One Piece Whopper Meal or One Piece BK Chicken Meal. But hurry - this bounty won't last long 🏴‍☠️🍔

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How this shows up on social:

There are over 785k videos on TikTok alone that use the hashtag #packopening featuring excited TCG fans opening sealed card packs live on camera, sharing in the excitement of the cards they want and ultimately pull.

Additionally, major collabs, like the Dodgers platforming the One Piece TCG was major news on social media, discussing what it means for the anime to be increasingly becoming mainstream, and people outside of Los Angeles clamoring online to get a look at the card, which are now being resold for upwards of $3,000.

🤖 Robophobia

The AI revolt has taken a… strange turn. We have previously written about the increased resistance when it comes to the infiltration of AI into daily lives, with silly trends to even more serious pursuits of digital detoxes. However, in the last month we have seen the criticism take the absurd, strange, and semi-dark turn the internet often takes, with people identifying as “robophobic”-- a hatred of robots and artificial intelligence, and using new “slurs” to vilify them.

Clankers– originally a derogatory term used in Star Wars, has now become a common term among the chronically online to put down AI and robots. Specifically, it is used to refer to humanoid robots or AI software doing jobs that were typically reserved for humans, such as serving food or cleaning. This push back against the development of certain technologies continues to show a real fear of technology threatening the livelihood and careers of real humans.

While a majority of this content is primarily humorous rather than genuinely antagonistic toward robots, it has still created a discourse online that feels borderline dystopian. Is it all fun and games, or is it indicative of the public perception toward the growing role technology has in our society? Probably a bit of both.

How this shows up on social:

A growing collection of content is surfacing online of people reenacting or reiterating discriminatory ideologies or experiences that have been historically used against minority groups, but twisting them to be toward AI and robots to bring humor to an unsettling reality, and unite people against the one common “enemy” we all share.

@football_drewRobophobia running rampant in clanker society #robot #robophobia #fyp #fypage #ai #clanker #robo

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🛍️ The Deinfluenced

Deinfluencing– where influencers took to their social channels to tell their followers what not to buy— surfaced in early 2023 as a direct response to consumers feeling jaded and anxious about consumerism and the environmental/economic impacts associated with it. For influencers, long valued for their authenticity and credibility in product recommendations, deinfluencing quickly became a powerful new symbol of trust and transparency.

Fast forward to today, where economic and environmental stressors are even more profound, we have seen a shift in users where they no longer look to influencers to tell them what not to buy, but are publicly begging to be deinfluenced, or stopped from making unnecessary purchases altogether. In a time where there is more pressure than ever to stay on an accelerating trend hamster wheel, people are rebelling against this through being candid on their own socials about the things they are interested in buying, and asking the comment section to talk them out of it.

How this shows up on social:

There are two social trends that have framed users as “deinfluenced by choice" , the first being the deinfluence my wishlist trend, with either a compilation of products or a single product they are interested in buying. Go to the comments: you’ll see a slew of “I have this and they were so uncomfortable” and “there is a cheaper and better version of this, go buy that one” conversations, where people are finding support and seeking knowledge from online peers to shop more responsibly.

The second trend turns being deinfluenced into a humiliation ritual of sorts, users making raw video montages of them saying out loud the thing they almost impulsively bought, to embarrass themselves into not buying it. The first video has gained over a million views in a few days, with comments saying how “genius it is because it’s so embarrassing”, to others calling it “a piece of performance art about consumerism during a recession”.

@parentsdisgraceSo far this has worked embarrassingly well and I dislike all the things I enjoy #bugjet

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Contrastingly, a few videos have backfired for creators, as the products being listed off are motivating people in the comments to want to then go buy it, or complimenting the creator for having good taste.

While the last few months have been characterized by a draw towards things that are messy and raw in revolt of the growing technological perfectionism that is infiltrating our culture, this month we are seeing an attempt to take back our control and personal agency in a world that is both curated yet unpredictable.

The contradiction between a hyper-controlled and perfected existence being promised to us, while the world continues to feel volatile and disorganized, has us engaging with content that feels like we are taking back the reins, rather than passively riding this roller coaster.While some may see a Costco frenzy over Pokémon cards, or a futile attempt to put rules around something as free as whimsy, we see a testament to the growing need for autonomy, control, and the lengths people will go to achieve it.

Welcome to neuewave!

It's July, and time for another trend breakdown!

If we're being completely honest, this one felt particularly difficult to nail down. Not only does the internet move at lightning speed, but so does the world, and it felt almost insurmountable to try and wrangle all the things that are happening right now into a singular report. While this is always a formidable task, and we never claim to be able to cover it all, this month presented a unique challenge.

However, as we wrestled with the sheer volume of information, a consistent theme emerged.

If you missed it, neuemotion was at the Cannes International Festival of Creativity where our SVP of Production took the stage as a Future Gazer to let the audience in on what we see coming for the future of content. Our core message, where we believe the future of content is centered around humanity and evergreen principles that connect deeply with audiences, felt all too true when analyzing content trends from the last month.

In a landscape that felt scattered; heavy in some places, and surface level in others, what continues to resonate are the trends that speak to something deeper, something intrinsically human. From aesthetic choices to intentional consumption, it's clear that in these times, we are spending the month looking for content that cements us together in the here and now, in the messy and real moments that make us human.

Let’s dive in.

🏝️ A Hot New Bombshell…

…has entered the feed! Even if you're not one of the dedicated viewers tuning into six hours of content each week, you've likely encountered snippets, clips, or unforgettable soundbites from “Love Island” on your social feeds. While we could probably write an entire piece analyzing the marketing slam dunks and social media movements that this show creates, it is an indisputable fact that "Love Island USA" has become this summer’s leader of viral moments and trending sounds, with brands like IHOP and Poppi using references a cornerstone of their summer content.

This isn't just television; it's a masterclass in capturing and dominating the digital zeitgeist. "Love Island USA" has proven that its influence extends far beyond the screen, becoming a mainstay of pop culture conversation and a goldmine for brands looking to tap into a highly engaged audience.

How this shows up on social:

With the #loveislandusa hashtag accruing over 1.1 million videos and counting on just Tiktok alone, the real question is, how doesn’t this show up on social media? Brands capitalizing on memes, an AI video of an islander endorsing a perfume has made the product go viral (although this smells of a lawsuit when she gets out of the Villa), and countless videos of engaged viewers giving their two cents on the islanders and what they want to see for their futures. In a show that is run by viewer engagement via voting, the social media movement that fuels the show’s drama is nothing short of dominant on social feeds.

📼 VHSthetic

Film camera users and vinyl record listeners, I raise you: VHS filmers. What started as a cozy, nostalgic trip down memory lane for music lovers and film buffs is now bursting beyond consumption and into creation. We're not just watching analog culture; we're actively creating it. The "VHSsthetic" is blowing up, and it's so much more than just a filter. It's a deliberate embrace of the grainy, glitchy, unpolished look that makes old videos feel authentic and scratches the nostalgic itch that we are all still longing for. And from luxury brands to pop stars, everyone is starting to lean into this fuzzy, raw, vintage film look.

Brands like Skims and Burberry, for example, have incorporated a distinct lo-fi, vintage visual aesthetic into their recent social ads. This tactical deployment adds a raw, effortlessly cool edge, subtly tapping into a more relatable yet aspirational vibe for their brands. Similarly, Sabrina Carpenter has integrated this old-school video aesthetic throughout her content and visuals for Manchild, effortlessly creating a sense of authenticity and a deeper, more immediate connection with her audience through a grainy VHS filter.

We look at this rise as a natural progression into nostalgic mediums and technology that has taken off in the past few years and as a more direct reaction to the development of AI technology– where we are seeing an even more subversive pull away from the “perfection” that AI offers into these grainy tech mediums that feel real, even if flawed.

How this shows up on social:

Aside from major brands, many users are adopting this more analog visual aesthetic for their own social feeds, providing tutorials on how to achieve this look, and investing in modern camcorders to capture their summers.

🌲 AI Revolt

Speaking of the pull away from the perfection of AI, we are not just seeing it in aesthetic choices but in more bold revolts of the AI tech that is exploding everywhere. People feel disillusioned and untrusting of AI the more it permeates our lives and online feeds, with Pew Research recently reporting that only 11% of the U.S. public are more excited than concerned about the increased use of AI in daily life.

Knowing this, along with the growing desire for digital detoxes generally felt by the public, it is no wonder that we are seeing even more people speaking out on social media against the use of AI, AI content being used by brands receiving mixed reviews at best, and new social trends that poke fun at the use of AI and lift human creativity and connection with nature up. This collective lean towards the imperfectly human signals a significant shift in how society is grappling with the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence.

How this Shows Up on Social

Polaroid’s latest campaign touts the joys that analog media enables, while boldly critiquing AI and what it can’t replicate– real human experiences. Both online and out-of-home, this campaign elicits a memorable stand against screen fatigue and the omnipresence of AI.

Additionally, with some users taking existing trending formats like the “Who said that?” to slam AI, or taking existing AI-centric trends and doing the “non-AI” twist, there has been a rise in slamming the phrase “I asked ChatGPT..”, where people get candidly sassy with those that use the AI chatbot, and encourage free thinking.

@livekindlyLess chatting with AI, more chatting with wildlife (from a safe and appropriate distance)

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Whether through creative campaigns or direct social commentary, users are actively pushing back against the ubiquity of AI.

👒 Senior Creators as the New Comfort Creators

We’ve discussed the inevitability of digital detoxes this summer, and we’ve also seen marketers' wondering, “how do we stay relevant if people are logging off?”. It may surprise you, but we don’t think the first and only step is to invest in out-of-home only.

Because the truth is, if people are really logging off, most of them won’t be shunning social media forever. Social media is not just platforms; it’s an extension of our lives. With over 93% of people reporting they use social media regularly, it is crucial in today’s world to how we connect with others and how we get information. So while the world is calling for a detox and break from social media, when they inevitably return, we predict there will be longer-lasting “digital dieters”, who are more intentional with both the quantity and quality of what they consume.

With this shift in mind, we've seen a new conversation emerging: the destigmatization of aging. This began with the surprising popularity of "The Golden Bachelor/Bachelorette" series in 2023, which sparked discussions about how life doesn't end with age. It served as a heartwarming reminder that life can be as fulfilling as one allows it to be. While older generations are often overlooked in marketing and influencer discussions—with the focus typically on younger individuals—the global rise of some "Golden" stars has been remarkable and telling of a future to come where older influencers are looked to for comfort, guidance, and a hopeful view of a future that may feel uncertain at times. This trend is so significant that even wellness brands like Oura Ring are reframing aging not as something to fear, but something to aspire to.

Fast forward to the legendary Sports Illustrated Runway Show in May 2025. Full of supermodels and celebrities, the unexpected star of the show was former Real Housewife Bethenny Frankel, with the internet obsessed over her appearance at the show. Her health, confidence, and outlook on life as a 54-year-old woman resonated widely– gaining her an increase of over a million followers since she walked in the show. And she's not alone; other women, from Martha Stewart to Pamela Anderson, have re-emerged into the limelight, offering a refreshed view of aging in modern society and becoming genuine influencers for younger generations. They aren’t just talking about aging– they are showing how their life can be more full and rich with age, a stark departure from messaging around aging in the past and a comfort when the future is often talked about fearfully.

As digital consumption becomes more intentional, older influencers are uniquely positioned to offer this comfort, embodying resilience and wisdom. Their authentic presence and life experience provide a reassuring anchor, making them valuable guides for younger audiences navigating complex times.

How this Shows Up on Social

While these well-known celebrities and reality stars have been gaining traction, there has been a growing desire from younger generations to follow and uplift senior creators like @baddiewinkle, and one that has recently taken the internet by storm is Queen Sheila, who posts her retired life full of day-drinking with the girls and going to yoga– a viral sensation that shows a funny, vibrant side of those in their Golden age.

@tiamacarooniI just also want to be a lady who lunches all day on a wednesday 😅 #fyp #dayinthelife #tiktoktrend #mumsoftiktok #retiredlife

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As we zoom out at these trends, we’re once again reminded of an idea we introduced in The Hollow Canyon, where we are witnessing a collective pull towards what is messy, tangible, and authentically cemented in time, anchored in the humanity that connects us all.

It's evident in the nostalgic surge of VHS content, where the unpolished video is a clear pull away from the “perfection” that AI offers, and a celebration of the messy, raw moments that connected us in the past.

It's profoundly present in the comforting rise of Senior Creators, whose lived experiences offers an authentic and hopeful beacon for younger generations grappling with current uncertainty.

And it's at the heart of the intense, in-the-moment cultural phenomenon of “Love Island”; gloriously messy, driven by raw human interaction, and the communal experience of living it in the moment makes it profoundly real and 'cemented' in collective memory.

The human experience is, by its very nature, messy and complex. As we navigate an ever-changing real and digital world, it is precisely this messy, raw reality we endure that will continue to deepen our connections and drive conversations into the future.

Last week, neuemotion attended the Cannes International Festival of Creativity for the first time as an agency. Not only did we get to create and capture incredible content with LinkedIn, but our own Robin Wood, SVP of Production at neuemotion, took the stage as a Future Gazer to let the audience in on what we see coming in the next 18 months for our industry, drawing on lessons from what has worked historically and aspiring toward new opportunities for optimizing future content.

Now, for the exciting part: this special edition of neuewave is your backstage pass. We're diving deep into everything Robin covered, sharing not only what she spoke about, but what she wished she had more time to talk about, and even pulling out some of those brilliant ideas that, well, ended up on the cutting room floor. Let’s get into it.

Cannes always has a buzzword. In 2023, it was AI – its boundless potential debated on every panel. By 2024, the conversation shifted to personalization, as everyone grappled with how to stand out when complex, quick content was suddenly democratized. But for 2025, neuemotion arrived with a bold new focus: hyper-personalization.

At neuemotion, we've extensively explored AI's role in the creative and advertising landscape (we even dedicated an entire Substack article to it). Our stance remains firm: AI is a powerful tool, not a replacement. True, human-led creativity, steeped in genuine human experience, will always reign supreme.

The rise of AI and the subsequent focus on personalization in the last few years have paradoxically led us back to seeking even deeper, more nuanced understandings of our audience. As everything becomes trend-obsessed and AI-driven, hyper-personalization isn't just about smart algorithms; it's about finding that human touch again. It’s the art of using technology not just to customize content, but to truly understand and connect with the unique stories and shared feelings that make us all human.

We believe humanity is the missing piece in content and creative strategy today, and is precisely why considering our humanity inour campaigns isn't just an option—it's a necessity.

To consider incorporating an audience’s humanity into our content at scale and truly create personal and human digital experiences, we must anchor ourselves in timeless, evergreen principles – such as storytelling, relatable narratives, and our innate draw towards novelty – and incorporate them into our content to create highly personal connections that last beyond the trend cycle.

This belief isn't just theoretical; we're actively putting evergreen principles into practice, especially with short-form content at neuemotion. Take a look at a piece we created with Salesforce. Their captivating "AI Wild West" TV spot wasn't just broadcast; it was designed for deeper engagement. Through an easter egg-like approach, Salesforce inserted influencer Corporate Bro into their TV spot, thus extending their AI Wild West Universe to social, inviting fans to turn their trained eyes into engagement. This wasn't just a cameo; it was a deliberate invitation for fans to become active participants.

And it worked. Eagle-eyed fans immediately spotted Pomerantz, becoming the first to shout themselves out in the comments. Is it any wonder this campaign led to us taking home the B2B campaign Webby?

This social first moment showcased many evergreen principles at work., the most notable being the idea that human connection and relatability, often achieved through the insertion of self into a narrative, is fundamental to a story's resonance, longevity, and virality. Inclusion of self is one of the most basic building blocks of storytelling, going all the way back to the preservation of oral histories– by tapping into these kind of shared human insights, stories gain power and stickiness when people see themselves reflected within them.

The new frontier of content is human-first hyper-personalization. It's where technology becomes the ultimate amplifier for empathy, making every interaction feel genuinely valued, understood, and deeply connected, at scale.

But how do we hyperpersonalize at scale? This was the pivotal question Robin needed more than a 45 minute session to explore on the Cannes stage – the very heart of how human-focused algorithms and creators are shaping this new era of hyper-personalization. We don’t think there is anything that proves our point further than the algorithmic platforms on which these pieces of content live.

Hyper-personalization has become a cornerstone of modern digital platforms, with platforms like TikTok and LinkedIn leading the charge in creating scroll-inducing "For You" pages and discovery feeds. At its core, hyper-personalization aims to deliver an enhanced experience for the audience, rather than feeling intrusive. Users want you to view their algorithm as a trusted friend that deeply gets them and their interests, not skeptically asking, “How do you even know this about me?”

When done right, hyper-personalization fosters a sense of delight and utility, making platforms indispensable tools for connection, entertainment, inspiration, and personal growth in everyday life– a friend in your pocket.

Platforms create different relationships with their users because, like people, each platform serves a distinct purpose in your digital life. Think about it: you probably wouldn't go to the same friend for pop culture hot takes, career advice, and creative inspiration, right? Platforms operate on the same principle. Each one is designed to offer a unique kind of connection and fulfill a specific need.

When looking at platforms like LinkedIn and comparing them against other sites like TikTok or Pinterest, the algorithms and outcomes are starkly different. LinkedIn’s algorithm expertly serves as the active Advocate, championing your growth by not only recommending relevant connections but also job opportunities, education, and relevant creators that can advance your professional journey. TikTok, for instance, is designed to be your ultimate trusted friend, intimately understanding your preferences and continually suggesting new, exciting content that you'll genuinely enjoy. At the same time, Pinterest is more inspiring creatively– the ultimate Curator to aesthetics and personal interests.

A critical component in supercharging these algorithms, particularly for discovery and reach, are influencers. These content creators act as the key to unlock the algorithm's full potential. Influencers produce a consistent stream of engaging content that feeds the algorithmic machine. Their ability to generate high levels of engagement (likes, shares, comments) signals to the algorithm that their content is valuable, prompting it to distribute more widely. We applied this principle in our Salesforce campaign, and we see brands adopting it and running with it.

This is why we were unsurprised, and cautiously curious, to see the presence of influencers at Cannes this year. We saw everything from major names like Alix Earle and Keith Lee taking the stage, to Forbes announcing their 2025 Top Creators List at the festival. It’s clear that brands and platforms recognize that influencers are not just creators; they are vital conduits through which algorithms learn, optimize, and ultimately connect with vast audiences in a hyper-personalized way. By forming real connections with human influencers, users implicitly extend that relationship to the platform itself. It's this human element that provides the fuel and allows the "Trusted Friend," "Advocate," and "Curator" to truly shine.

Whether we look at the algorithms or how to hack them, these fundamental truths cannot be left behind:

You are human. Your audience is human. They connect with humans. And humanity is evergreen.

Keeping your audience’s sense of self and their humanity at the core of your content and campaigns will leave you well-prepared for a novel and changing future.

As we step into 2026 and beyond, the most impactful question you can ask yourself is this: How will you weave humanity into your content to create hyper-personalized moments that don't just yield results, but truly move your audience?

Welcome to neuewave!

June has already been off to a great start, but is certainly not without its woes on social media. While the world watches an embarrassing manchild fight go down on Twitter/X, or listens to Manchild by Sabrina Carpenter, we have been deep in conversations surrounding online trends, and the future impact AI will have on the creative industry. If you missed our recent perspective piece, The Hollow Canyon, we make the case for human creativity among the rise of generative AI. We highly recommend checking that out, and would love to hear your thoughts.

neuemotion is headed to Cannes Lions!

We're thrilled to see a team representing neuemotion headed to France next week for the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity! From our work with LinkedIn, to hearing Robin Simon Wood on the Future Gazers panel, we are so proud to be a part of the festival. Plus, we'll be sharing thoughts from the festival right here later this month. If you're attending, come find us! If not, stay tuned.

Let’s talk trends.

🎸 You can be Vulnerable, as Long as it’s Funny

Marketers and brand strategists often preach that authenticity is the bedrock of building a thriving online audience. Whether you're a burgeoning brand or an aspiring influencer, the mantra is clear: be yourself. But what happens when "being yourself" veers into oversharing? Is there such a thing as being too vulnerable online? Recent weeks on social media suggest a resounding "yes"—unless you’re in on the joke.

For years, storytelling, putting yourself out there, and embracing vulnerability have been tactics that foster genuine connections. Audiences are then “supposed to” feel like they have an intimate, personal relationship with the person or brand behind the screen. Yet, when vulnerability crosses into extreme territory, the reaction can flip dramatically. Instead of drawing people in, it repels. Even giving the public implicit permission to ridicule those who lay bare their lives without apology.

Regardless of your personal interest in Justin Bieber, it was difficult to escape the online uproar ignited by his post following his wife Hailey Bieber's first Vogue Magazine cover. His candid (and since removed) caption, detailing a past marital disagreement where he told Hailey she would never achieve such a milestone (but was happily proven wrong), sparked an impassioned online debate, many ridiculing him for airing intimate marital details, while others were angry that he seemingly overshadowed his wife's significant achievement.

Regardless of your stance on the caption, it was an act of profound vulnerability. While vulnerability is typically lauded in the digital sphere, something about Justin's post crossed a line, granting permission from the world to make fun, rather than celebrate.

This wasn't just because of his celebrity status, either. We saw a similar phenomenon with the viral "guitar guy" from this month, whose display of vulnerability and joy was met with a slew of parody videos and hate online.

At its core, nothing he did was unique—people share their original music online all the time, and it certainly wasn't the worst musical content ever posted. So why was this particular act of vulnerability so worthy of public ridicule?

The critical distinction often lies in tone and delivery, and crucially, a willingness to not take oneself too seriously. Consider the popular "you're so funny" trend from earlier this year, where users share deeply personal (even traumatic) confessions. This type of content is widely accepted—even celebrated—online because the vulnerability is packaged with humor, often accompanied by upbeat music and a self-deprecating style. This lighthearted approach makes the oversharing palatable, allowing audiences to embrace the raw honesty without judgment, while guitar guy’s passion and unapologetic tenacity led people to feel like they had permission to not take it seriously.

Ultimately, while authenticity remains a powerful tool, the digital landscape demands a discerning approach to vulnerability. It’s not just about what you share, but how you share it.

How this shows up on social:

The recent "just calling to say goodnight" trend on social media, involving men unexpectedly calling their male friends to wish them goodnight, is a perfect example of “acceptable” vulnerability. Breaking free of the typically stoic nature often associated with male friendships. The trend offered a subtle yet significant display of vulnerability, encouraging men to express a soft, caring sentiment to their peers. By framing this unexpected tenderness within a humorous context, the trend facilitated an emotional openness that might otherwise feel uncomfortable, proving that it's often okay to be vulnerable online if that vulnerability is delivered comedically – or even better, unseriously.

@sydsacksI’ve been cracking up at this trend so I made Peter call his besties to say goodnight 🤪 #goodnight #besties

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😶‍🌫️ Big Reveals

This month, we've witnessed a fascinating evolution in how major franchises are building excitement for their upcoming projects. It's a strategic shift in how information is revealed, igniting social media and cultivating anticipation among fans. We're talking about a distinct new format for cast list announcements. Traditionally, these were dropped all at once, a simple list or Deadline article to be consumed. But now, we're seeing something different.

Instead, major players are leveraging social media for multi-day reveal video series, dedicating individual spotlights to each cast member. This isn't just about sharing names; it's about transforming a basic piece of information into an event. This approach profoundly reimagines the use of social media for making significant announcements. It's rapidly setting a new standard, offering a clear blueprint for how even the most minor details can be elevated and made newsworthy in the digital age.

How this shows up on social:

We have seen two major franchises from completely different media spheres employ this reveal tactic: The Hunger Games franchise, and the long-standing reality competition show, Survivor.

For the Hunger Games’ new movie installation for Sunrise on the Reaping, the studio released 14 videos over a month to announce each major cast member, creating tons of buzz and sparking conversations for every cast member. It proved to be a highly successful tactic, maintaining conversation focused on the film for weeks.

Similarly, Survivor adopted this tactic to build excitement for its highly anticipated 50th season, which traditionally features fan favorites from previous seasons. To unveil who would be returning, Survivor launched a reveal video series on TikTok. These teasers hinted at the selected players by revealing only the season they originally appeared on, prompting fans to speculate and theorize about who would be playing again. Once all 15 individual cast member videos were live, they released a final video featuring host Jeff Probst revealing the full cast list. This strategic rollout across varying entertainment properties underscores the versatility of this new announcement format, proving to be a powerful tool for generating sustained buzz and engagement.

💦 Sweating Mid-Life

The concept of status has undergone a significant recalibration, a phenomenon we explored in a previous neuewave, where we discussed how economic uncertainty has led to the prevalence of status symbols acquired through knowledge and effort over traditional status symbols acquired through wealth. Since our piece, not only has the explosion of Labubu dolls further substantiated our point, but we have also seen this shift, driven by economic realities that have made traditional markers of success increasingly elusive, reimagining a different life milestone: the midlife crisis.

For 81% of millennials, the classic image of roaring away in a newly purchased sports car, or having a lavish ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ adventure is unaffordable in today's climate. Instead, their pursuit of self-reaffirmation and discovery has taken a more accessible, experience-driven turn, fueling the noticeable rise in extreme fitness pursuits like Hyrox races, and a new fascination with remote backpacking transformations gaining immense traction online, showing how economic and societal shifts have led to people redefining what it means to reinvent yourself in adulthood.

How this Shows Up on Social

Google searches for "Hyrox" alone have surged by over 150% since the beginning of the new year, and over 22 Million videos on TikTok surrounding Hyrox Race preparation, reflecting a collective pivot towards physical challenges that offer a sense of achievement and personal transformation without the price tag of a luxury vehicle.

Additionally, there has been an emerging trend of "before and after" content from scrappy, untethered backpacking trips, where viewers often note how much more vibrant, full of life, and rejuvenated those who escape the stressors of the real world then return. This showcases not a material acquisition, but a journey of rejuvenation—a more attainable form of midlife catharsis for the modern millennial.

@yoitseanwhat healing looks like

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🌿 Touching Grass

“Touch Grass”— what was once an easy burn to the chronically online is now the activity for Summer 2025. A long-growing desire that seems to be hitting an all-time high, where people are craving a break from their screens.

Gen Z has walked a fine line between being highly engaged in the online world and yearning for a previously offline era, marked by their affinity for “dumbphones” (BlackBerry revival 2025, anyone?), film and digital cameras, and real-life experiences. Over the past few months, a growing discourse has emerged about the desirability of genuinely unplugging. One popular social format taking over Substack illustrates the desire to never open Instagram or watch TikTok ever again (we will let the irony of conversation on these platforms being used to say how much they don’t want to be on said platforms speak for itself).

This shift toward stepping away from technology leads to an embrace of nature, with people turning to more outdoor-oriented hobbies, and outdoor-themed activities that have influenced social content. In Pinterest’s recent Summer Trends report, "digital detox" is the search of the summer, and being offline and touching grass is the new aspiration.

The "Martha Stewart aesthetic" – think gardening, baking, and making your home cozy – has exploded on Pinterest, growing an incredible 2,889% according to their Summer Trend Report. And it makes sense. Martha Stewart was the blueprint in the late 90s and early 00s for a more natural, yet elevated lifestyle that people are gravitating towards today. Her appeal now, in this hyper-digital age, lies in that nostalgia for an analog hands-on existence.

How this Shows Up on Social

This desire to unplug is showing up in how we spend our time and what we find fun. This spring and summer have seen a vibrant surge in the popularity of cookbook clubs and garden party themed content across social media platforms. Fueled by a collective desire for connection, creative expression, and a deliberate break from screens, individuals are finding community through home-cooking and outdoor gatherings. From elaborate tablescapes to beautifully plated dishes from a chosen cookbook to whimsical garden decor, in a digital detox summer, these themes have become an approachable way to integrate personal interests and a desire to unplug, resonating deeply with online communities seeking inspiration for their own real-life get-togethers. It's clear people want to get their hands dirty, get outside, and feel connected to what they're doing.

This is what we are seeing going into summer: a cultural reshaping of how we present our most personal moments—whether that’s vulnerability, excitement, or self-reinvention, by packaging it in a way that feels more curated and experiential.

Social media is no longer just a platform for broadcasting our lives; it’s becoming a curated space to play tug of war, where people are met with the challenge of how to be vulnerable yet funny, or keep up with trends while yearning for the past. All the while, there's a growing push to find balance, embracing moments of disconnection and returning to simpler, more grounded experiences. Ultimately, these June trends reveal a fascinating tension: the desire to meticulously craft our online personas while simultaneously craving the authentic, unplugged freedom of a life lived offline.

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What more can be said? Few threads remain for the sewer.

It’s impossible for the creative industry to overlook the technological strides rippling out to public accessibility, not in waves, but in a never-ending avalanche. Have we unlocked limitless creativity? Or is thinking itself … dead?

This creative paradox is two-sided:

• To your left, infinite possibility.

• To your right, a creeping emptiness.

Our collective squint at the horizon is working in overdrive to decide if we’re witnessing a renaissance or a creative extinction. This indecision is a result of looking at material that mimics the act of creation without embodying the creator. It’s no longer “Oh, that’s AI” it’s “Wait, what made this?”

In 1970, Masahiro Mori coined the term “Uncanny Valley” and for the last 55 years, we’ve wondered if it could be crossed. Now, it’s a matter of when, not if, which begs the question: what is the next obstacle along the path of technological progress? After all, when American settlers journeyed West, they didn't climb out of a singular valley and land on the beaches of California.

Viewing AI-generated text, imagery, and video elicits an almost indescribable feeling. Real, but ghostly. Concrete, but wafer-thin. Aesthetically perfect, but emotionally vacant. This is the essence of what we call the Hollow Canyon: a space where imagery is pristine, words are polished, but none of it means much of anything at all.

The Uncanny Valley is about how things look.

There’s a gut-level reaction to something *almost* human. Think humanoid robots, waxy CGI faces, or AI avatars that blink a millisecond too late. It’s the discomfort that comes from a visual near-miss: something that appears lifelike but lacks the spark of life.

The Hollow Canyon is about how things feel.

It’s the moment you realize the image, idea, or piece of writing you’re engaging with has no pulse behind it. The Hollow Canyon is dotted with perfection: beautifully lit, technically precise, and utterly meaningless. It doesn’t miss the mark visually, it misses it spiritually.

The unease we feel when confronted with AI art isn’t purely aesthetic. It’s psychological. According to a study published in Scientific Reports, people consistently rate AI-labeled artwork as less valuable than the same work labeled as human creation. The discomfort stems not just from what we see, but from what we know to be true: this wasn’t made by someone. It was made by something that copied a million someones. We are biologically wired to connect with the intent behind the image. Strip away the artist, and the soul goes with it.

If you’re getting the synthet-ick, you’re not alone.

Take the viral ChatGPT action figures or AI-generated Studio Ghibli-style landscapes. Technically impressive, yes. Emotionally resonant? No. They’re DOA. They lack the fingerprints (literal and metaphorical) that tell us someone cared enough to try.

Consider Saratoga Water’s attempt to ride the wave of their viral moment earlier this year involving influencer Ashton Hall. Instead of joining the cultural conversation with wit, insight, or even a tinge of absurdity, they posted AI-generated stills that mashed together water bottles, bananas, and marble countertops. The result? AI thought it understood the joke. But … are we laughing?

They had an opening for something memorable, and what they delivered was simply… algorithmically accurate.

We have been closely watching the debates—and debacles— within creative industries around where AI’s lane should start and stop. Our observation is this: there is a clear misunderstanding of where real creativity comes from, what the limitations of AI art are when it comes to audience perception, brand expression, and creative ideation, and what the real threat is in advancing AI technology in creative work.

Most importantly, the fear that AI will replace creatives in the industry is understandable, but misguided. No matter how advanced and unique AI creative tools become, human creativity will always be superior to AI creativity.

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Our messiness is actually our superpower.

There is an enduring humor found in a poorly executed Photoshop image. A confounding “who even thinks to do that??” when we stumble across Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” sung across 331 different movies. And an “oh, brilliant” when we see the cast of Severance toiling away in their Lumon office space in Grand Central Station.

The human ability to take two (or 331) disconnected things, turn them into one cohesive whole is unmatched. Not only does AI create things that are “perfect,” but the very process it uses to create is too clean. When AI is at its best, it gives you exactly what you want. But is that what you want?

Say that a business executive has an idea for a static social post and they employ AI to execute. They would go to the AI, communicate the idea in writing, and AI responds with an output. After review, if the executive wants to make some changes to the AI image, they respond back with the requested changes and try again.

This is what AI is meant to do: respond quickly and implement feedback as efficiently as possible. AI is the ultimate Yes Man, always “agreeing” with the feedback it is given, even if it isn’t excellent or moving the work in the right direction.

One of the most underrated skills of a creative team is the ability to discern what is needed by someone who needs help bringing their vision to life. However, AI struggles with the inherently vague and subjective feedback often given in creative fields. Phrases like "Make it more impactful" or "I don't know why, but it feels off" are deeply human expressions, and a common example of feedback from client to creative. AI, lacking intuitive understanding or the ability to read between the lines, cannot effectively interpret and apply such abstract direction to existing mediums.

When giving vague, “make it better” feedback to an AI generator, you will have difficulty getting closer to your desired product because AI needs specificity to work. Unlike humans, AI can’t discern what is unsaid or know the right questions to ask to get you there.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on. But many AI campaigns have already been interesting and successful!”

Classic “Yes, And!” … when we look at these campaigns, the genius isn’t in the AI, but the human idea that is being executed.

One of our favorite AI campaigns is Nike’s Never Done Evolving video and social campaign starring Serena Williams. Nike took audiences back in time, creating an AI-generated match-up between Serena at the 1999 US Open (her first Grand Slam win) against her more recent appearance at the 2017 Australian Open. This contrast depicted how emerging technologies can enhance sports data analysis, and highlight Serena's remarkable decade-after-decade determination to continually evolve, even as a top athlete.

In addition to various rewards, the final gameplay was broadcast to the public as a YouTube livestream, reaching over 1.69 million of Nike’s subscribers. Social media posts promoting the broadcast were also included across Nike’s Instagram and Twitter channels.

An incredibly successful example of AI creative work, but the real magic? The undeniably human idea of the pursuit of evolution, embodied by Serena Williams playing her past self.

In an era where AI can democratize the execution of creative tasks, the market is quickly becoming saturated with technically competent but conceptually uninspired AI-generated content. The true competitive edge will then soon revert to the source of original thought. If everyone can leverage the same AI tools to produce technically polished output, the ability to generate a truly original, resonant, or unexpected idea will become the paramount differentiator.

The "Hollow Canyon" is more than just an eerie aesthetic or vibe; it’s the unnatural place AI art transports us. While flawlessly mimicking form and executing instructions with unparalleled efficiency, it remains devoid of the human experience. The messy, subjective, and emotionally resonant elements that give true creativity its soul. The discomfort we feel from AI-generated art comes from the unsettling awareness that something depicting our reality cannot participate in it.

AI excels at replication and optimization, but it cannot conceive the deeply nuanced, culturally relevant, or emotionally resonant ideas that captivate and move people. Therefore, the fear shouldn't be about AI replacing creatives. The real threat lies with shortsighted executives and decision-makers prioritizing cost savings and rapid “creative” output over genuine impact.

The unfortunate truth is that people are better at judging objective savings over subjective quality and the creative industry will likely feel the consequences for a moment in time. But it won’t last. If we allow AI to become the default creative engine, we risk inundating our world with content that is technically flawless but emotionally vacant. We believe the path forward for creativity isn't found in the soulless "Hollow Canyon" of AI-generated efficiency, but in leveraging AI as a powerful instrument to amplify the irreplaceable, messy, and deeply human aspects of creative expression.

In short, the people will always want … the people.

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Co-authored by: Ted Harrison and Hailey Allen.
Edited by: the broader neuemotion team.

Happy May! We are so glad to have you here to discuss trends for this month.

Finding the underlying threads linking what we see and do online to our social, economic, and cultural lives is fun and incredibly tricky. We're figuring out how the world influences the internet and how it influences things right back. The trends we're about to explore offer a fascinating look at this connection, showing how our online actions mirror and even shape what's happening in the world around us.

On the edge of your seat? Well, before we dive in, we have two major announcements to share:

Add “award-winning” to our bio, because we just won our first two awards as an agency!

neuemotion is thrilled to announce our Webby Award win for Best B2B Social for the "Ask More of AI" campaign with Salesforce, and our Platinum Hermes Creativity Award for our work on Toast's "It's the Little Things" giveaway campaign with Keith Lee! We're incredibly proud to be recognized for our work and grateful for the fantastic clients who made it possible. This is just the beginning!

Our Director of Production, Robin Simon Wood, is speaking at Cannes Lions!

If you are heading to Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, be sure to check out neuemotion’s own Robin Simon Wood at her Future Gazers panel!

We can't wait for her to share her thoughts on trends, neuromarketing, and what brands need to know for the future. We may or may not be putting something together around our takeaways from the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity next month—stay tuned.

Updates are over! Let’s dive into the trends for May.

🎞️ Main Character Syndrome Goes Cinematic

The more online the world is and the more tangled our social web becomes, the harder it can be to feel like a true individual with a unique lived experience. We see the phrase “I have never had a unique thought in my life” in the comments of every other TikTok video, and as we look online to find community, we also find that it can be exhausting trying to set yourself apart in a digital world.

There are a number ways people have attempted to establish their individuality online, including the development of ‘Main Character Syndrome’: the mindset that your life is a story or a movie where you're the central character (and thus act accordingly).

Main Character Syndrome is connected to the pervasiveness of online comparison culture and the desire to establish individuality in a world where everyone’s life is on display. As opposed to being just another human in the world, Main Character Syndrome allows people to view themselves as the protagonist, romanticizing even the most mundane life experiences.

Many trends have surfaced in the last month that scream ‘Main Character Syndrome’, but with an even more cinematic twist. Through editing and storytelling formats replicating indie-movie montages and fun character intros, content has centered users' life experiences as the main character and idealized the smaller moments that make life truly special. Too bad the Oscars already passed, right?

How This Shows up on Social:

Multiple social formats this month have illustrated this desire to showcase unique and meaningful experiences cinematically.

From the introspective "the butterfly effect is crazy..." trend, showcasing the serendipitous paths leading to significant life moments, to the anticipatory "she/he doesn't know it yet..." format, allowing users to narrate their unfolding futures in the third person, they are all ways for users to assert their individuality and inject a sense of personal narrative into the overwhelming stream of shared online experiences.

Taking this cinematic, character-driven mindset even further, we've seen formats directly replicating cheeky movie intros with deep-voiced narrators and Lizzie McGuire-inspired "minis" offering commentary beginning to pick up steam online. Ultimately, these trends echo the core sentiment of wanting to feel like the main character in one's own life story, especially within the vast landscape of the internet.

💸 Recession Indicators

The word no one can avoid: Recession. Regardless of what side of the political spectrum you’re on, a looming potential recession is surely taking up some kind of space on your timelines, as the fiasco of world politics, tariffs, and economic downturn unfolds. While 72% of Americans are worried about a recession hitting within the next year, leave it to the internet to find the (dark) humor to deal with that possibility.

As a result, the internet is identifying “Recession Indicators”—some real and some unserious—as potential signs or patterns in culture and media that suggest a recession is coming.

How This Shows up on Social:

With over 54 million videos under the trend on TikTok, there is no shortage of examples of what people are claiming to be indicators of an impending recession. The neuemotion team is no stranger to these claims, and so we asked the team: What are some funny recession indicators you think are clear signals of future economic trouble?

We will never shy away from the opportunity to reference an iconic and dramatic reality TV show, so behold our very own "Recession Indicator Pyramid" that would make Abby Lee Miller proud—our take on the recession indicators to watch, unserious or not, ranked from least to most telling. Let us know if you're seeing these out there, too!

Honorable mentions that didn’t make the pyramid: pants under dresses, big celebrities starring in non-luxury commercials, and these shoes being back in store windows.

🌵 Social Capital meets Attainability

Speaking of economic conversation, it seems overt wealth is out; subtle access is in. In today's economy, flashing a ticket to space might earn you more eye rolls than likes, while a rare concert stub elevates your social capital. What changed? The very definition of aspiration.

This shift is indicative of our specific moment in history, where economic uncertainty and the increasing difficulty of achieving traditional milestones of the "American Dream"—homeownership, debt-free living, and raising a family—mean these once-standard aspirations feel out of reach for many.

The backlash directed toward influencers hauling designer furniture to their Coachella campsites, or celebrities heading to space suggests that status is being redefined, particularly for younger generations navigating precarious economic landscapes. Today's status symbols are increasingly found in access to seemingly attainable yet often scarce experiences or items, like Trader Joe's limited-edition tote bags (that people literally brawled for at 8 am) or tickets to highly coveted concerts.

While both covert and overt displays of wealth can feel out of touch, social capital is now acquired through possessing or experiencing things that signal cultural savvy, effort, and insider knowledge, often within a framework of perceived attainability. This reimagines aspiration, where "coolness" lies in having something theoretically accessible to many, rather than something utterly beyond reach, suggesting a recalibration of desire in an era where traditional success metrics feel increasingly elusive.

How This Shows Up on Social

The mindset: It’s cool to have something I could’ve had. It’s not cool to have something I could never fathom having.

While we mentioned concert tickets and TJ’s Tote Bags, there are entire trends displaying what modern social capital looks like in a way that is both attainable and aspirational to large audiences. The first being the “forgot this was the whole point” trend, where people show the moments and things in life that actually matter and add meaning, and the second being the “I’m rich” trend, where people look to other metrics of personal wealth, like seeing a band at their peak, ordering 4 drinks at once, or simply knowing someone who understands your sense of humor as being modern indicators of wealth and aspiration.

🦍 You Had to Be There… and by “There”, we mean “Online”

The internet is never short of outlandish and strange inside jokes that spread like wildfire, and yet would not easily translate when trying to explain to someone in real life. The internet has developed its own secret (and ever-changing) language, constantly evolving with these fleeting, bizarre inside jokes. From Minecraft references to debating the outcome of 100 men vs. 1 gorilla, the conversation continues to deliver strange humor that connects solely with the chronically online.

What makes these trends so fascinating is their inherent inaccessibility to the offline world. Think about trying to explain the concept of the hyper-niche “I’m so hungry, I could eat [insert name here]” to your relative who still calls it “The TikTok”... it feels like a losing battle. And yet, for those who understand the absurdity, it is the peak of comedy during its 15-minute trending window.

The humor often relies on hyper-specific cultural references, a mix of irony and absurdity, and their short lifespans that define a cultural moment. For example, in the case of the “Chicken Jockey” meme that came from the Minecraft movie’s niche reference, it blends a bit of all of the above, capturing a specific humor and audience by referencing a video game in a way that taps into the absurd humor characteristic of TikTok.

How this Shows Up on Social

Internet humor frequently thrives on taking things out of context, exaggerating situations to the extreme, or embracing the nonsensical—evident in the hotly debated, albeit absurd, hypothetical of whether 100 men could defeat a single gorilla, and the niche-reliant "I'm so hungry" trend on social media.

While the team at neuemotion might have differing opinions on the outcome of such a primate-versus-human battle (it’s obviously the gorilla, right?), the enduring fascination with this question highlights that the joy is found in embracing absurdity for its own sake as a source of online entertainment, not in ultimately proving your point to a situation we will likely never test out.

Similarly, the "I'm so hungry" trend cleverly subverts the familiar "eat a horse" hyperbole by replacing it with a surprisingly specific individual in an unsuspecting victim’s life, further demonstrating the internet's penchant for niche and unexpected comedic situations. Ultimately, these examples illustrate how online humor often finds its strength not in logic, but in the shared appreciation of the bizarre and the unexpected.

Those are our trends for May!

These trends tell a compelling story about the intricate and dynamic connection between our online and real-world experiences. What's particularly revealing is the specificity we see emerging across these digital landscapes. Whether it's the detailed narratives of imagined movie-like lives, the pointed humor around specific indicators of a possible recession, or the incredibly niche and often absurd internet jokes that unexpectedly shape our real-world conversations, it all underscores how our online lives not only reflect but actively influence our society, economy, and culture through these distinct and often surprising details, and will endlessly fascinate us here at neuemotion.

Regardless, we are happy to have you on this weird ride with us! Until next time!

We are so excited to dive deep into the online trends circulating this month. Here at neuemotion, we know that culture moves fast and that we live in a world of infinite corners, communities, and subsections of conversations online, making it hard to hone in on what “everyone is talking about”. The internet is always a hotbed of evolving trends, and this report highlights a few key ones we have seen shaping our online world.

From brands' attempts to connect with younger audiences through language to the captivating appeal of extravagant lifestyles– we will try to tackle everything we have seen across the popular feed. By examining these diverse phenomena, we aim to understand the driving forces behind today's dynamic social landscape and spark conversations about how online behavior responds to the world around us.

Before we dive in, a quick and exciting announcement: our agency, neuemotion, has received its first Webby Award nomination for our "Ask More of AI" campaign with Salesforce! 🥳 We're thrilled to receive this recognition and would be incredibly grateful for your support in the People's Choice Award – your vote can help us win!

Click here to vote!

OKAY. Shameless plug out of the way. Let’s get into the key trends we have seen circulating this month.

🤞 Does Every Brand Need to Be Your Bestie?

The internet is awash with the question: "What Gen Z intern wrote this?" This sentiment encapsulates a growing skepticism surrounding brands' attempts to connect with younger audiences through overly casual—often forced—language. Brands feel the pressure to show up authentically– I mean, 86% of people say authenticity matters when deciding what brands they like and support. There are many avenues to authenticity for a brand, but an increasingly common route is attempting to meet younger generations where they are, tapping into emerging slang and phrases to, quite literally, speak their language.

But where do we draw the line? Is it more important to speak authentically to the brand or to the consumer? Does every brand need to talk like your bestie?

Yes. Well, sometimes.

Gen Z is the most distrusting and hyperaware generation toward branded content, yet they remain loyal to brands that foster genuine relationships and validation. Some might argue that by incorporating their slang into campaigns and social feeds, brands aren’t just speaking their lingo but showing that they understand and value them.

Many go beyond talking like Gen Zers and speak to them as casually as if they were friends. Brands are doing this not just for authenticity but to meet the content needs of modern consumers. Anecdotally, the content that many young people engage with online seamlessly blends with posts from their friends and non-business accounts. This leads to a difficult paradox for brands trying to find the sweet spot: how to speak Gen Z’s language without being inauthentic to their own brand identity.

How this shows up on social:

While many try to use language to appeal to Gen Z, these attempts to incorporate their slang are often met with skepticism and viewed as inauthentic relatability attempts. The significant engagement with content mocking brands for doing this often falls flat for younger audiences.

It’s hard to focus on one brand because… they are all doing it.

We’re left scratching our heads.

For example, Zillow's recent attempt to engage younger audiences through colloquialisms like "content girlie" and "SLAYEDDD" on TikTok exemplifies the challenges brands face in navigating evolving online language.

Zillow's efforts to appeal to Gen Z are particularly perplexing given that their primary audience comprises individuals actively seeking to purchase homes, a segment in which only one-quarter of Gen Z currently represents. Moreover, even for the segment of Gen Z casually browsing Zillow or hoping to enter the market, the adopted language fails to align with the inherent seriousness and the imperative of trust that characterize both Zillow's brand reputation and the significant financial undertaking of purchasing a home.

No hate at all to this “content girlie” who is hyping up someone online, but giving in to the pressures to use Gen Z slang online may prove ineffective in genuinely connecting with Gen Z, who are often quick to identify forced or inauthentic attempts at relatability, while simultaneously diluting their established brand image and perceived trust.

While brands strive for relatability, the line between genuine connection and cringeworthy appropriation is tough to walk. This begs the question: how can brands forge meaningful connections without sacrificing their integrity in a landscape saturated with manufactured intimacy?

📼 Nostalgia to Promote the New

The use of nostalgia to launch and promote content continues to dominate social feeds this month. Now, you might say, "come on, brands have been relying on nostalgia forever!" and while that's technically true, it's recently taken a new angle.

Different from Newstalgia, where you take old things, modernize them, and redistribute them in modern culture (think the Barbie craze or Taylor Swift album re-records of 2023), this repackaging of the old aims to tap into hyper-specificity and personal connections rather than just trotting out an old reference.

How this shows up on social:

In the case of "Sunrise on the Reaping,"—the prequel to the Hunger Games that sold over 1.5 million copies in its first week—the book leverages established fan loyalty built upon familiar characters and a well-known world to introduce a fresh narrative and rekindle excitement. This has allowed the franchise to capitalize on existing emotional connections while simultaneously attracting new audiences through the promise of expanded lore.

The resurgence of the beloved Hunger Games franchise has led to an onslaught of online content, as fans deep dive into world lore and rewatch movies to connect with one another again. Modern meme formats like “What’s your favorite horror movie?” allows users to relive hyperspecific moments from the franchise’s toughest scenes and creates the perfect storm of nostalgia just in time for the arrival of a new story.

While not drawing on a pre-existing fictional world, Benny Blanco and Selena Gomez's album rollout campaign strategically utilized nostalgic elements of Gomez's past work and had the internet buzzing as fans had exclusive access to personal memorabilia.

The "12 Days of Rare Stuff" campaign leading up to the album release offered fans access to personal memorabilia and experiences at remarkably low prices (like her Wizards of Waverly Place wand that sold for $4.00 USD) and fostered a sense of intimate connection, nostalgia, and exclusivity. Additionally, the couple’s "Spring Breakers" anniversary screening stunt—in which they watched Selena’s old movie with fans and played an exclusive snippet of their unreleased Charli XCX collaboration—created genuine excitement and fan engagement by bridging the gap between nostalgic joy and new eras.

This trend isn’t just for Gen-Z. Millenials are currently riding the high of “recession pop” with a recent splash of Kesha and T-Pain into their TikTok algorithms promoting new music.

💎 Extravagance: The Trainwreck We Can't Look Away From

In an era defined by curated perfection, the allure of exuberance and even chaotically elaborate lifestyles is undeniable. Figures like Ashton Hall, Brigette Pheloung, and Alix Earle have garnered massive followings by embracing their lavish, semi-ridiculous, and largely unattainable lifestyles. This is also why the "mob wife aesthetic" became such a dominant online microtrend, with its unapologetic embrace of opulence and drama, as it further illustrates this embrace of lavish living. This fascination with spectacular lifestyles reflects how intriguing unattainability presented as aspiration is among social media. While many emphasize authenticity and connection with audiences, there is also a shared intrigue in watching something that feels so opposed to many of our realities. It's a trainwreck we can't look away from.

How this Shows Up on Social

Did you think we were getting away with a trend report WITHOUT talking about our Saratoga Water and banana facial king, Ashton Hall?

Well I hate to break it to you, but we must. Hall's viral content revolves around his meticulously detailed and extravagant morning and night routines, characterized by an extreme level of dedication, often involving early wake-up times, elaborate self-care rituals, and precisely timed activities. It’s fascinating, it’s strange, it’s unpleasant to watch, yet became a cultural phenomenon; brands like McDonald’s and Duolingo got in on spoofing his morning routine, meaningful conversations were sparked about masculinity in modern society, and Google searches for “Saratoga Water” went up 2400%.

Despite their inherent strangeness, the viral sensation surrounding Hall's hyper-specific routines highlights our collective intrigue with realities far removed from our own, suggesting that in the digital age, the opulent unattainability holds an equally powerful grip on our attention than the pursuit of the perfectly relatable.

🍰 Sweet Treat Nation

Were your feeds inundated with a ton of content about dessert this month? The recent surge of sweets-focused content flooding feeds – from trending sounds and viral brownie ball recipes to elaborate cake picnics – feels particularly resonant in the current climate.This trend appears to be today’s reflection of the 2023 Joyconomy trend, where consumers gravitate towards positive channels for connectivity, showing resilience, innovation, and joy in the face of continued hardship and social anxieties. This has manifested in many ways over the years– the emergence of bolder color palettes in fashion and design, increases in adult hobbies, and more playful branding elements.

Amidst a backdrop of social and political unrest, the desire for wholesome community connection is demonstrably on the rise, and in a world increasingly dominated by digital interactions, these new dessert-centric trends offer a tangible and accessible way for people to connect over something positive and hopeful in times of uncertainty, highlighting the surprisingly profound role of shared sweet experiences. (yes, dessert is that deep!)

How this Shows Up on Social

“Cheesecake.

*Ding*

Apple Pie.

*Ding*”

Do I even need to go on? If you have opened a social media account in the last month, you certainly know what viral sound I am referencing. This trending audio of people showing how much they love different desserts by doing a variety of different things is one of the dessert-centric trends that have brought people joy and positive reasons to connect with one another online this month– with over 370,000 videos posted to TikTok featuring this sound.

And to take the dessert love into real life, a viral cake picnic that was held in San Francisco last week blends the IRL connections with social, where 1300+ bakers of all skill levels came together to share their creations and share about it online. This event, born from a simple desire for connection and communal happiness, resonated with online audiences and sparked plans for similar gatherings in other cities. This phenomenon highlights a growing appetite for offline, community-driven experiences that foster a sense of shared humanity and give people joyful reasons to come together.

That’s all for April!

To wrap it up, the internet's throwing a lot at us right now, huh? But then again, that’s what keeps it fun … right? When you zoom out and look at everything – from the dessert craze with its silly sounds and real-life meetups, to the nostalgic trips, those wild lifestyles that keep us glued, and even brands trying way too hard – there's a common thread. Everyone online seems to chase a bit of joy and want to share it with others. Whether it's the comfort of something old, the shared laughter of poking fun at extreme lifestyles and try-hard brands, or just bonding over a love for cake, they all collectively paint a picture of a complex online landscape where sharing joy with others is paramount in capturing and retaining audience attention and engagement.

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Welcome to the inaugural report from neuewave!

We're thrilled to officially launch our exploration of trends and culture, specifically how they manifest in online behavior and conversations. As we begin, we want to set the stage. If you haven't already, we encourage you to read our introductory article, 'Welcome to Neuewave,' where we outlined our mission: to foster understanding, offer our perspective, and spark meaningful conversations. We're not here to claim absolute authority or infallible insights. In fact, we embrace the possibility of being wrong, as it encourages us—and you—to challenge conventional thinking about culture and the online landscape.

Also, it is really difficult to pick what to write about when we talk about trends.

Not only does culture move fast, but we live in a world of infinite corners, communities, and subsections of conversations making it hard to hone in on what allegedly “everyone is talking about”. Within our agency, we're constantly reminded of the diversity of our personal feeds, and we expect—and hope—yours differ as well. These are trends identified to be equalizers and call on public truths many can relate to, even if you aren’t privy to the Roku City lore, or wish the Anglerfish discourse was featured. Don’t worry, I wish I could have gotten it in there too.

With that, we've identified four key trends that have captured our attention as we get into March. Let's dive in.

#1 The Meet Cute is Back… Kinda.

The charm of the “meet cute,” once relegated to classic rom-coms, is experiencing a significant resurgence with a twist, signaling a shift in how people perceive and seek connections. The cultural shift towards seeking "meet cutes" and organic connections, seen in the resurgent popularity of romance novels, coupled with the recent decline of dating app usage for younger generations, who now want to focus on finding their soulmate IRL, leads us to think that younger generations are exclusively interested in traditional dating.

However, this desire for real-life interaction is complicated by social anxiety surrounding approaching strangers in public, which uniquely affects the generations that have primarily made or supplemented relationships online. While singles events and speed dating for Gen Z and Millennials have seen a 49% increase in attendance, this trend suggests a demand for not just in-person encounters, but curated ones that bridge the gap between digital and spontaneous encounters.

These events offer a structured environment, mitigating the uncertainties of casual approaches, while still providing the opportunity for in-person connection. Essentially, young people are seeking a middle ground: escaping the limitations of online profiles while retaining a sense of control and reducing the perceived risk of traditional, unmediated interactions.

Showing Up On Social:

Not to forgo mentioning the massively popular Meet Cutes NYC that highlight meet cutes or Streethearts that facilitate them, but a new dating app has launched in NYC blending the dating app with a focus on facilitating real-world 'meet cutes' through ‘Pokemon Go’ style alerts when a match is in the area speaks to the broader yearning on behalf of younger generations for a return to unexpected, organic connections.

#2 Brand 🤝 Betrayed

There are few things more beloved on the internet than getting the tea on the most recent betrayal, whether it be romantic, professional, or platonic. While it is commonplace for massive drama mills to churn on a celebrity breakup or unexpected moment, we’re seeing the beginnings of brands directly facilitating, perpetuating, or capitalizing on The Drama™. Not to be mistaken with brands simply commenting on or joining the online discourse (like every brand mascot who ironically claimed they would buy TikTok to save the US), we are seeing an increase in brands directly partnering with the people who have been betrayed to generate engagement.

Showing Up On Social:

On the heels of 2023’s Scandoval, Ariana Maddix became the It Girl spokesperson for various brands, including Duracell, Glad, and Red Robin, all producing content that directly fueled or referenced the betrayal Ariana experienced and the unsavory comments made by her ex-boyfriend. Fast-forward to 2025, we have seen this exact scenario resurface on a smaller scale following the very strange and public breakup of beloved “Bachelor” couple Matt James and Rachel Kirkconnell. With the internet behind Rachel, Brawny decided to take a page out of the Maddix book to feature Kirkconnell in a social media video referencing the restaurant conflict that initiated their breakup.

This doesn’t just apply to bad ex-boyfriends and wronged ex-girlfriends, but has recently extended to “betrayed” NBA star Luka Dončić, after a shocking late-night trade rocked the sports world, leading to both Dallas Mavericks fans and the rising star feeling betrayed and blindsided.

From body language analysis to reports of his emotional state, media outlets fueled the public perception of his hurt. Subsequently, Jordan Brand leveraged this narrative by featuring Dončić in a social media video coinciding with his first game against his former team. The video depicted a symbolic shift from Texas to California, accompanied by the tagline "Full Tank. No Mercy," further amplifying the "betrayal" storyline.

This example illustrates a growing marketing strategy that uses perceived betrayal to generate engagement, a trend likely to continue as audiences show excitement for revenge campaigns and identifying a hero and a villain in the entertainment content they consume.

#3 Crypto Struggles to Beat the Unserious Allegations

Everything in me wanted to avoid talking about crypto or AI, at least for the first edition, but the crazy world of memecoins has become too prevalent to be ignored. We know memecoins, even if you think you don’t. They are a type of crypto asset inspired by internet memes, characters, current events, or trends for which the promoter seeks to attract an enthusiastic online community to purchase the meme coin and engage in its trading (remember Dogecoin? Of course you do!).

While celebrity-backed memecoins have undeniably drawn attention and excitement to the crypto space, they've also significantly damaged its reputation. Once viewed as the future of finance by a dedicated few, crypto is now increasingly perceived as a mere internet joke by the broader public. These speculative tokens, centered on internet celebrities and meme culture, are diverting attention from legitimate blockchain initiatives. Platforms like pump.fun have accelerated this trend, further blurring the line between serious technology and online amusement. While crypto already had an uphill battle to legitimacy by the public, becoming an internet meme surely increases the struggle.

Showing Up On Social:

The speculative tokens centered around internet celebrities have become so closely watched, especially following the instance of the Hawk Tuah girl, who manipulated the price and then sold off her holdings of her own memecoin in late 2024. Particularly fascinating was the saga of a 13-year-old streamer making and dumping a self-made coin, then following with two more coins after serious online backlash—one called ‘im sorry’ ($SORRY), and another called ‘my dog lucy’ (LUCY) after people threatened to dognap his family pet.

Most recently, this has culminated in an internet spectacle: the official NBA Twitter was allegedly hacked in order to launch and profit from a fake memecoin, NBA coin. The fact that it was even believable to the general public tells us that memecoins are the next installment of meme-culture that could have some of the most dangerous effects yet.

#4 All About Ambience

Ambient content, defined as non-intrusive, immersive media designed to create a calming and sensory-rich experience, has seen a significant surge in popularity as individuals seek respite from the chronic stress of modern life.

Building upon the "gongbang" trend of the early 2020s, which emphasized focus, destimulation, and relaxation by watching people study, and the broader consumption of long-form content in 2025, people are increasingly looking to escape the constant stimulation of their digital environments and find long moments of tranquility.

However, this desire for ambient content and experiences is not solely about escaping overstimulation; people are also seeking a different kind of engagement, one that lulls them in a way familiar, yet sometimes overwhelming, swipe feed.

This affinity for ambient scenes helps explain the internet's fascination with Roku City, Roku's animated screensaver, which lulls viewers into a positive sensory trance where people genuinely yearn to transport to.

This trend's prominence is further evidenced by brands like Belmond releasing their "Long Shots" series, featuring hour-long, visually stunning ambient scenes of their luxury travel destinations, and Google integrating ambient TV screens into their latest models, effectively turning living rooms into tranquil digital landscapes.

Showing Up On Social:

Roku City obsession aside, the current "Hozier yell" trend is a small example of this non-intrusive sensory experience, where people overlay Hozier's powerful vocals from his song ‘Northern Attitude’ onto serene, ambient visuals, highlights the desire to blend intense emotional expression with calming aesthetics online. It's a fascinating juxtaposition that resonates with a generation seeking emotional release within a soothing context.

And there you have it, folks—a whirlwind tour through the delightfully bizarre corners of our current cultural landscape. From the romantic resurgence of the 'meet cute,' with a modern twist, to brands capitalizing on public betrayals, we've seen how the internet's appetite for drama and connection continues to evolve. All four of these trends outlined call to a broader pushback against the artificiality and monotony that can accompany our heavily digital lives– whether it be rebellion toward trance-like tranquility, to full-blown financial scandals.

This dichotomy is reshaping online content.

We see a rise in both serene, cozy creators offering tranquil escapes and brands like Nutter Butter embracing chaotic online personas. Both extremes offer a break from the monotony, either by completely dissipating or dramatically amplifying the stimulation we experience daily. This reflects a broader desire for experiences that feel real, unfiltered, and engaging, whether through calming tranquility or exhilarating unpredictability.

Yes, neuewave, pronounced like “new wave”, but not like new wave in the way that broadened the punk movement in the 1980’s, but like “neuewave”, neuemotion’s new intelligence platform to talk all things news, trends, and culture in the 2020’s. But don’t fear; we are still aiming to be just as cool.

Anyway, welcome to the official Substack of neuemotion. We're pumped to have you join us here to discuss the things happening in our world, dissecting cultural shifts, emerging trends, and everything in between.

Who is neuemotion?

The official answer is that neuemotion is an advertising agency that takes big brand marketing to definable social audiences with science-backed creative ideas. Founded in October 2023, we have rapidly grown to a team of 12 (and counting!) who share a passion for great work informed by culture and the scientific principles behind attention and engagement. From seasoned pros to fresh-out-of-college teammates, we have created a team all contributing their unique perspectives who are eager to learn and grow together.

The unofficial answer? We're a crew of creatives who love to deep dive on the latest trends, online conversations, and crafting campaigns that actually work. We're the kind of people who debate the merits of different meme formats, dissect viral TikToks, and then use those insights to build killer strategies for brands we genuinely admire. We're fueled by coffee and pictures of our CEO’s baby, inspired by the world around us, and get really (probably too) excited about making cool stuff for our clients.

So, why neuewave?

At neuemotion we root our work in science, aiming to understand on a psychological level what content resonates with today’s digital audience. We're not just about chasing the latest fad or using today’s trending soundbite; we're about understanding why certain trends take hold, what they signify, and how they impact the brands and businesses we work with.

We use trends and platforms on top of a foundation of human principles to deliver results for our clients, and neuewave is where we will share what we've learned – and what we're continuing to discover.

Walking the line of culture, trends, creativity, and science, we read a lot. Scientific papers, latest studies, think pieces, articles, trend reports, and every rabbit hole that fills up our internal slack channels. As a team that needs to stay in the know of our ever moving culture, we have noticed a frustrating trend: many trend pieces and analyses simply recycle the same ideas, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of reporting. (think "Breaking News: Trend X Confirmed in Trend Report citing Another Trend Report").

We understand the challenge; culture moves fast. It's like trying to hit a speeding target with a barrage of arrows—eventually, you'll hit something, but it doesn't mean you predicted its path. But instead of joining the trend reporters, we wanted to create a space for dissecting, challenging, and building upon these trends. A place where we can even swing and miss—and be okay with it.

neuewave is the culmination of this approach. It's a space where we share our perspectives, offer our insights, spark conversations about the world, and dive deep into the cultural drivers and science behind what is grabbing our attention. We aim to explore not just what's happening now, but what comes next, helping brands plan for both the present and the future.

What can you expect from neuewave?

Now, I don’t want to scare you. When we talk about being a science-backed agency, we are not at all implying that we are in the lab donning white coats and looking into a microscope. Our approach is much more practical and grounded in real-world observation, categorized into 4 major sections:

All of these methods are used in varying capacities to inform our work. When it comes to neuewave, we will largely be living in the world of Observational Studies, but there will be a time or place for all of these methodologies to inform analysis on culture and trends. Think of it as being astute cultural observers – listening, watching, and consuming content, culture, and conversations to decipher the patterns and trends shaping our world. So, don't worry, you won't be bombarded with scientific jargon or complex equations. We're here to translate the 'why' behind the trends into actionable insights, making sense of the evolving cultural landscape we live in.

From the subtle shifts in consumer behavior to the seismic cultural moments that redefine our reality, we'll be exploring what's happening, what we see, and what you should be paying attention to.

• Trend Deep Dives: We won't just skim the surface. We'll delve into the heart of emerging trends, exploring their origins, impact, and principles underpinning their rise.

• Cultural Commentary: We'll examine the cultural moments that capture our collective attention, offering our unique perspective on their significance and the cognitive mechanisms at play.

• Strategic Insights: We'll connect the dots between cultural trends, business strategy, and the science, providing actionable insights that you can use to stay ahead of the curve.

• Provocative Questions: We believe in the power of conversation. We'll pose questions, challenge assumptions, and invite you to share your thoughts and perspectives.

• A Peek Behind the Curtain: neuewave will offer a glimpse into the thinking and happenings that drive neuemotion. You'll get to know us better, understand our approach, and see how we help our clients navigate the complexities of today's world.

Ultimately, neuewave is about more than just discussing and regurgitating what [insert the last groundbreaking trend report circulating on LinkedIn] is saying about the future of content, creators, and media. It's about increasing understanding, interpreting cultural shifts, and using that knowledge to create meaningful conversations that drive the future. This is also where we are supposed to say “and have fun!”, so yeah, and have fun.

We're excited to embark on this journey with you. Subscribe now to never miss a beat.

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