The Rise of SBTI

Those still using MBTI to define themselves are now outdated. Forget whether you are an E or an I; today, I just want to be a “dog poop person.” Overnight, a personality test called SBTI has made waves, with people celebrating its absurdity.

SBTI, short for “Silly Big Personality Test,” was created by Bilibili user @Q肉儿串儿, who borrowed the framework of the MBTI test, which is rooted in Jungian psychology. While MBTI can lead to introspection, SBTI is all about laughter. Compared to MBTI, SBTI is neither precise nor serious, using absurd and relatable internet memes to poke fun at itself, leaving you to exclaim, “What a thrill!”

The creator openly admits that she is not a psychology major and that her interpretations of personality traits may be vague or inaccurate. Her initial intention was to remind a friend with a drinking problem to quit drinking.

However, as the creator stated, “MBTI is outdated; SBTI is here.” In terms of viral potential, SBTI can indeed overshadow the serious MBTI.

Yesterday, a wave of new “species” flooded WeChat Moments, including insecure “waste people,” unrequited lovers, cynical “dog poop people,” generous “money givers,” self-sabotaging “self-attackers,” fake people, and the laid-back “dead people.” There’s a persona for everyone.

The exhausted public is tired of pretending to be perfect in the face of societal pressures and prefers to openly embrace their flaws. As one netizen humorously put it, “Taking the MBTI feels like a soul-crushing experience; taking the SBTI feels like I’m laughing with the world.”

The Collective Diagnosis of SBTI

The explosive popularity of SBTI stems from its clever subversion of norms, using self-deprecation to combat societal pressure, and resonating with the collective desire to reject the grind and avoid motivational clichés.

Unlike MBTI’s “scientific rigor,” SBTI discards lofty labels like “architect” and “advocate,” opting instead for quirky and abstract terms like “ma lo” (a slang term for a loser), “dead person,” and “dog poop person.” This language directly addresses the struggles of young people facing societal pressures, workplace stress, and mental exhaustion.

In this test, young people no longer need to disguise their “positive energy” or embellish their traits. Instead, they convey their true selves through absurd labels, transforming feelings of exhaustion and despair into playful self-mockery. This not only alleviates anxiety but also rationalizes and lightens negative emotions, providing a low-cost emotional outlet without the pretentiousness of direct complaints.

By deconstructing labels and resisting authority, SBTI allows for lighthearted self-deprecation while also subtly rebelling against societal expectations.

While MBTI attempts to mold us into standardized elite products with four letters, SBTI uses a knowing chuckle and relatable personas to remind us that it’s okay to be tired, frustrated, and even angry.

SBTI does not define a “perfect personality” nor sell an “ideal persona.” Instead, it reflects the real state of young people—imperfect, struggling with internal conflict, and wanting to give up. This candid expression resonates with youth who feel, “Finally, someone understands me.” Compared to MBTI’s focus on “shaping oneself,” SBTI leans towards “accepting oneself.”

In addition to resonating with common emotions, SBTI’s design inherently attracts attention, with a low barrier to participation.

The first two letters of SBTI, “SB,” carry a playful and rebellious connotation in Chinese internet culture. Coupled with a name similar to MBTI, it capitalizes on the classic personality test’s popularity while sparking curiosity through contrast.

The SBTI testing process is straightforward: no registration is required, users can start testing immediately, and it’s free. With 31 lifestyle-related multiple-choice questions, results can be generated in two minutes. The questions relate to everyday scenarios without any technical jargon, making it easy to complete. In contrast, the standard MBTI version has 93 questions, while the full version has 200, often requiring payment, thus raising the entry barrier.

The test interface uses provocative phrases like “MBTI is outdated; SBTI is here,” further enhancing its appeal.

SBTI has become a new form of “social currency.”

With these characteristics, SBTI is naturally designed for social platforms. The test result screenshots are memorable, featuring quirky labels, amusing interpretations, and unique cartoon images, allowing users to share results directly on WeChat Moments or Xiaohongshu, sparking interactions and finding like-minded communities.

Those who identify as “dead people” can share their experiences of feeling like zombies at work, while “ATM-ers” can express the frustrations of being too nice. The “dog poop people” can vent about workplace hypocrisy, while “thinkers” and “leaders” can flaunt their personas. This test even spawns new internet memes, with users joking about their personalities in relationships, like “I’m a monk, my husband is a goddess; some say we’re like a fairy tale.”

In summary, SBTI, with its low-cost design, high resonance with emotions, and strong social interaction, has become a vehicle for the public to relieve stress, break the ice in social situations, and express their true selves, ultimately creating a viral sensation.

The AI Path and WeChat Stage

The creator single-handedly achieved what major companies struggle to do, thanks to the power of AI and the platform of WeChat.

A look at the creator’s Bilibili videos reveals that she does not seem to have a technical background. She admits that the SBTI test “incorporates AI synthesis technology, with 15 dimensions of L/M/H representing low/medium/high, primarily for matching purposes.”

In this test, the creator contributed the idea, while the implementation was carried out by AI. This relies on Vibe Coding, allowing non-technical users to create custom applications.

Vibe Coding is a new AI-assisted programming paradigm first proposed by former OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy last year. Its core idea is that developers are only responsible for the concept and results, not for writing code line by line. Instead, they describe what they want to AI in natural language, and AI handles the implementation.

While personality tests have gone viral in the past, SBTI is not the first to do so. Previous viral tests often originated from marketing departments of major companies. For instance, NetEase Cloud Music created similar personality tests that went viral in 2018, 2019, and 2021.

The reason is simple: non-technical users previously struggled to create HTML web applications.

Now, AI has changed the dynamics of viral content creation—companies have the technical advantage, but there is no absolute edge in creativity. In the future, we can expect more similar viral hits to emerge, likely through a “human + AI” collaborative model.

The popularity of SBTI is also closely tied to WeChat. As of the end of last year, the combined monthly active accounts of WeChat and WeChat reached 1.418 billion. Only within the WeChat ecosystem could SBTI unleash its full viral potential.

WeChat Moments, as a familiar social space, provides natural trust endorsement and facilitates word-of-mouth spread.

You may overlook the personas and traits of strangers, but when friends share their vulnerabilities, you might feel, “Why not join in the fun as a clown?” This encourages participation in a collective celebration.

Content shared by classmates, colleagues, friends, and family carries a trust filter, significantly lowering the psychological barrier to participation.

WeChat Moments serve as a semi-public “safe stage,” perfectly balancing sharing and safety. Here, self-deprecating expressions can showcase personas, demonstrate humor, gain attention and resonance, all while feeling secure without fear of judgment from strangers. It’s a low-risk social sharing experience.

Of course, even those who are relatively unfamiliar can use this test to break the ice and find common ground, using phrases like “So you’re a ma lo too?” to bridge distances.

The closed-loop dissemination path of WeChat has created an almost perfect cycle for SBTI’s spread: test link → Moments/group chat sharing → private discussions → friends participating, forming a viral effect that far exceeds algorithmic recommendations.

The flowing SBTI and the solid WeChat platform suggest that the next viral hit could be SCTI or SDTI, showcasing the powerful potential of AI—an ordinary person without coding knowledge can create a super viral hit that penetrates the social circles of 1.4 billion people with just a brilliant idea and a precise grasp of public sentiment. The once monopolized “viral power” by large companies is being dismantled by “human + AI” super individuals.