In the past, whenever a meme was associated with a popular channel or a well-known figure, people would think it was just riding the trend—price surges, story ends. Now? The trend has completely reversed.

Just look at recent phenomena. A certain brand created a "related meme" product, which directly sold over 100,000 units, with pre-orders lining up until January 2026. Even more outrageous, this product has nothing to do with the listed company at all, yet the company's stock price still hit two consecutive limit-ups. The power of a meme has become so great that it can bypass commercial logic and manipulate market sentiment.

By 2025, the Chinese internet might be called the "Year of the Awakening of Network Culture Value."

People no longer see memes as mere emojis. After being refined through short videos and various creative adaptations, more and more people realize—an excellent meme can be directly monetized into purchasing power and stock price. Surprisingly, it doesn't even need to be "real" to support it.

And then, look at what happened next. Various related products sold like crazy: a spicy brand’s "meme-flavored spicy strips" became favorites in community lotteries; recently, a noodle brand gained popularity due to a pun, frequently trending on hot searches. What does this show? When a meme becomes powerful enough, it automatically turns into a traffic portal and a symbol of social identity, attracting brands eager to connect with young consumers.

Brands started to "borrow memes" in return, and even capital is willing to pay for a "blunder," indicating that internet culture has become a new form of social hard currency.

Where will this energy ultimately go?

My observation is that it will evolve from something exclusive to the internet into new New Year’s gifts and social tokens.

During this year's New Year visits, what’s the most impressive gift to give to young people like little nephews or cousins? A beverage related to a meme, or a pack of meme-flavored snacks, or even some virtual assets within the community. Not necessarily expensive, but novel and fun enough to instantly bring people closer and share a knowing smile.

This is a new interpretation of that classic advertising slogan in the new era: This New Year, don’t give gifts; if you do, give network memes.

What’s your take?