A serious-looking news graphic promises a scientific revelation. Under an orange cat, the revelation is simply “Hi.” That mismatch is the entire point of Scientists Reveal the Hi, a deliberately silly image meme that received renewed attention in October 2026. Its remixes went from “Bye” to a cat wearing a seal's face.
Where did the cat and headline come from?
There are two related strands, and they should not be mistaken for one official news report. BBC Newsround published an actual piece about the genetics of ginger cats on May 16, 2025. Separately, mock BBC-style images of dogs and cats captioned “Scientists reveal the secret” circulated online in July 2025. Their solemn presentation made the absence of any actual secret funny.
On May 28, 2026, a post titled “Hi” appeared in Reddit's r/xertunposting with the caption changed to “Scientists reveal the Hi.” The BBC did not announce that researchers had discovered a greeting. Someone turned the promise of a revelation into a one-word hello.
What did real commenters say?
The public Reddit thread includes people answering the cat as if it had genuinely greeted them: “Hello 😸” and “Haiii :3.” One reply adopts the cadence of a grand French public address: “Français, Françaises, aujourd'hui je hi.” Roughly, “People of France, today I hi.” It sounds like an important national announcement, then lands on the smallest possible message.
Those are visible Reddit replies, not invented quotations or claims about Instagram's comment section. The audience joins the gag by treating the absurd headline with perfectly straight-faced courtesy.
How did the joke evolve in October?
Know Your Meme records an October 12 Instagram edit by @pooods that inverted the colors and changed “Hi” to “Bye.” On October 14, @owen_kung replaced the cat's face with a seal's. The format was highlighted again in Know Your Meme's October 23 weekly roundup.
The template is portable because it already contains its own fake authority: a news headline. Changing a single word or face produces a sequel without needing an elaborate explanation. The less world-changing the “discovery,” the bigger the contrast.
Original comedy: a fictional press conference
Host: “Today we announce a major breakthrough.” Scientist: “The cat said Hi.” Reporter: “Can the result be reproduced?” Scientist: “On the second attempt, it said Bye.” Reporter: “Who reviewed the paper?” Scientist: “A seal.” Host: “Thank you. This concludes the conference.”
This exchange is original fiction, not a real comment or scientific statement.
The punchline
The joke is not about debunking the science of ginger cats. It is about using the gravitas of scientific news to announce a greeting. Reddit responded with greetings, the image said goodbye, and a seal joined the research team. The world's most overqualified hello now has a sequel.
References (6)
- BBC Newsround, ginger-cat report, May 16, 2025
- Original Reddit “Hi” post and public replies, May 28, 2026
- @pooods Instagram “Bye” remix, October 12, 2026
- @owen_kung seal-face remix, October 14, 2026
- Know Your Meme entry, updated October 19, 2026
- October 23, 2026 weekly roundup
The Reddit image and selected replies were directly accessible. Instagram posts were not directly accessible; their content and dates follow Know Your Meme's documentation.
