65dB TOKYO Releases 'First Half of 2026 SNS Trend Deep Dive' Report — X Where Language Barriers Collapsed, TikTok Where Mere Mimicry Consumption Ended. Uncovering Consumer Insights from 5 Billion Posts.

65dB TOKYO, the social listening specialist team of TBWA HAKUHODO Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Wataru Uchida), has published a report titled 'First Half of 2026 SNS Trend Deep Dive,' based on an analysis of over 5 billion posts generated on social media during the first half of 2026. This report structurally deciphers the transformation of consumer communication.

In the first half of 2026, while the evolution of AI rapidly collapsed 'language barriers' on SNS, a significant shift occurred in short-form video content from 'consumption memes'—where users merely mimicked existing templates—to 'editing memes,' where users add their own unique variables. This report thoroughly analyzes the consumer psychology (user insights) behind these two major trends.

Seismic Shift in SNS in the First Half of 2026: Consumers Elevating 'Ordinary Daily Life' into Special Content

65dB TOKYO investigated posts on X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, and Instagram from January to May 2026, analyzing conversation volume and engagement. The analysis highlighted an upgrade in consumer psychology: 'How can I use SNS functions and formats to turn my ordinary daily life into more enjoyable days?' Moving beyond the traditional culture of seeking 'Instagrammable' moments at special tourist spots or events (Instagram-style) or capturing unvarnished reality (BeReal-style), we have entered an era where people proactively make their everyday lives shine by overcoming language barriers with AI or adding 'editing elements' to their videos.

Trend 1: [Expanding Global Exchange] World Debut in 'One's Own Language' Enabled by AI Auto-Translation

In the first half of 2026, an update to X fully launched an 'automatic post-translation function' and a 'cross-language recommendation function' utilizing AI (Grok). This created an environment where casual daily posts made in Japanese are automatically translated and directly displayed on the recommendation timelines of overseas users. Previously, the conventional wisdom for global reach was non-verbal content that could be understood without words. Now, a paradigm shift is occurring where content spreads worldwide unintentionally, remaining in the user's own language.

⚫ The American BBQ Meme: Connecting Over 'Just Look at the Meat!' Generating Over 500,000 Reactions in 3 Days
When an illustration of overseas BBQ became a topic in Japan, local US users who detected this through auto-translation began posting actual BBQ scenes for Japanese audiences, exclaiming 'Look at real BBQ!' This went massively viral. It garnered over 500,000 mentions on X in three days, with American BBQ posts consistently achieving over 10,000 likes. A spontaneous, happy rally of global exchange emerged, with users marveling at differences in meat volume while discovering shared passions for grilling techniques, delighting in sharing their own culture.

⚫ 'Teach us, Korean Unnie!' Culture of Directly Questioning Local Users in Japanese
There has been a surge in posts directly addressing people from other countries in Japanese, bypassing media and influencers, such as 'A question for Americans' or 'Hello, Korean unnis.' Users are asking for things like 'what cosmetics are really trending locally,' making it easier to verify information accuracy. Overseas users are beginning to function as the most 'trustworthy source of information' for each other.

⚫ A Post Containing Neither English Nor Japanese Goes Viral in Japan: The 'Cat Game' Crossing Borders
A post by a Korean user introducing a 'cat brushing game' in Korean spread to Japan via auto-translation and cross-language recommendation features. The introductory post garnered over 240,000 likes, becoming a major topic in Japan even though the original post contained no English or Japanese at all.

The full-scale implementation of auto-translation has eliminated the traditional time lag where trends 'became popular overseas and then arrived in Japan later,' creating an environment where things 'become popular simultaneously in Japan and overseas.' On the other hand, it also suggests a new perspective for corporate marketing: the risk of unexpected backlash due to the unintentional spread of subtle linguistic nuances abroad.

Trend 2: [Editing Memes] From Mere Mimicry 'Consumption' to Creative Formats Enabling 'Safe Self-Expression'

In short-form video content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, 'consumption memes'—mass-produced by simply imitating existing templates—have reached their limit. Interest is shifting towards 'editing memes,' where users add their own modifications. The background is consumers' desire for 'safe self-expression': they want to show individuality but fear failure ('bombing'), and they want to ride trends but dislike being a mass-produced follower. Mechanisms that allow users to inject a bit of their own personality within the safety of a pre-defined framework (template) are explosively increasing user participation.

⚫ miniVlog (TikTok: approx. 9.4 million posts / Instagram: approx. 10.6 million posts*)
Short-form vlogs combining clips of a few seconds each. Techniques like customizing sound effects to match the video or varying camera angles (wide to close-up) allow for infinite originality through the combination of 'music × sound effects × angle × content.'

⚫ Setlog (Social Vlog App for Fragmentary Daily Recording)
An app that automatically creates a mini-vlog by recording approximately 2-second videos every hour. When shooting with multiple people, users can edit and set their own 'unique shooting rules' in advance, such as 'color restrictions' (color hunting for specific items) or 'facial feature restrictions.' This enhances the sense of community and elevates ordinary daily life into special memories.

⚫ Handwritten Lyrics Format ('mosi mosi?' / SASANE)
A video format where users write lyrics or draw illustrations in their own handwriting to the song 'mosi mosi?' by artist SASANE has become a trend among younger generations (over 176,000 videos using the song). This analog creative experience, reminiscent of the purikura (photo sticker) doodle culture of the early Heisei era, is popular for allowing users to create one-of-a-kind works with handwritten text.

The era of mere template consumption is over. This analysis reveals that consumers are seeking 'creative experiences (Co-Creation)' where they can enjoy their own editing elements within the 'security of a framework.'

First Half of 2026 Summary: The Future of Communication and Marketing

What the two trends (expanding global exchange and editing memes) have in common is the perspective that 'the protagonist of daily life is the consumer themselves, and SNS is a tool to expand that daily life.' This suggests that for corporate and brand SNS marketing, it is no longer sufficient to simply provide (and have consumers consume) 'easily spreadable UGC templates.' An approach that draws out consumers' creative motivation and supports their creative process is required.