‘Goodbye to my Chinese spy’ TikTok meme explained

One of the most viral TikTok memes of 2025 has users creating videos featuring the catchphrase, “goodbye to my Chinese spy.” Here’s what it means.

The ‘My Chinese spy’ meme, also known as ‘Me saying goodbye to my Chinese spy,’ is a trend on TikTok where users post satirical videos bidding farewell to a fictional Chinese spy monitoring their activity on the app.

The meme emerged in response to concerns about TikTok’s pending ban in the U.S., set for January 19, 2025, due to national security issues. The lighthearted trend has taken the platform by storm, with creators imagining fond and dramatic farewells to their imagined spy companions.

Origins of the ‘Goodbye to my Chinese spy’ meme

The trend began on January 11, 2025, when TikTok user claxmcb posted a video addressing his “Chinese spy” and “guardian angel.”

In the video, he humorously thanked the spy for curating a memorable TikTok experience, referencing celebrities like Addison Rae and viral events from the platform. The video quickly went viral, amassing over 3 million views and 748,000 likes in three days.

This kicked off a flood of similar content, with TikTokers playfully imagining their fictional spies as caring figures responsible for crafting their personalized For You Pages.

On January 12, TikTok user saltyjimmy posted a comedic video pretending to be a Chinese spy monitoring users’ TikTok feeds. This video received over 5 million views and 870,000 likes.

As the potential TikTok ban looms, creators have posted thousands of videos referencing their imaginary spies. Some frame the spies as devoted, almost affectionate figures who curated their perfect For You Page (FYP), while others take a more comedic or dramatic tone.

Popular captions include lines like “Me and my Chinese spy parting ways on Jan 19th,” “My personal Chinese spy just calling to say goodbye one last time,” and “Me saying goodbye to my Chinese spy (he perfected my algorithm .”

The meme is a satirical farewell to a platform that’s become a big part of internet culture, making the impending loss feel both bittersweet and hilariously over-the-top.

This is just one of the latest trends gaining traction on TikTok, alongside the viral ‘DTFM’ Bad Bunny craze and the ‘somewhere on Google Maps’ fad.