Remember the weird purple glowing ball that went viral on social media?
For a while, people were sharing videos of what appeared to be a rare type of lightning or something out of a science fiction movie. The strange object was spotted in areas such as Pasir Ris, Tampines, and Yishun, leaving many people completely puzzled.
One video on TikTok, filmed from a car’s dashboard camera, showed a woman getting the driver to stop because of the mysterious object. This video alone was super popular, getting over 40,000 likes and being shared more than 24,000 times. Other videos surfaced too, showing the same glowing ball in different locations, like Pasir Ris Park and a void deck.
An Instagram user named @juwiezy noted, “This has been reported in other parts of the world, and only the lucky ones get to record it.” This kind of comment added to the mystery and made the whole situation even more interesting.
It turns out that the entire thing was a planned marketing campaign. The company behind it was YouTrip, a fintech company known for its travel wallet. The campaign was meant to introduce the company’s new birthday mascot, a purple dragon named Trippie. The “lightning ball” was actually Trippie flying around the city.
In a TikTok post, YouTrip explained everything, saying: “These tiny dragons zipped from Tampines to Yishun before landing in a suitcase at Changi, and now… they’re ready to make a big splash.”
@youtripsg ‼️ MYSTERY SOLVED: Seen these purple ball lightning videos online? That was us 😗 Here’s a first look at our birthday mascot, Trippie! 🎂 These tiny dragons zipped from Tampines to Yishun before landing in a suitcase at Changi, and now… they’re ready to make a BIG splash 💜 Find out how to get your hands on one very soon 👀 Stay tuned for Wed, 24 Sep 2025 🗓 #balllightning #sgtiktok #trending #fyp #singapore ♬ original sound – YouTrip SG
This isn’t the first time YouTrip has pulled a similar stunt. Earlier in the year, they used videos of purple skies over the Causeway to promote their Malaysian ringgit wallet. Those videos also went viral, getting over three million views. This latest campaign shows how creative and effective viral marketing can be. While a few people were annoyed, most online commenters thought it was a smart move. One person even wrote that the person who came up with the idea “deserves a raise.”
