On What’s Trending, Hongbin Jeong, Nadiah Koh and Alexandra Parada share trending stories from insuring love to outsourcing emotional support and finding comfort in a crying toy. We began with a viral tale from China where a woman cashed out a decade-old “love insurance” policy after marrying her long-term partner, sparking debate over whether romance can, or should, be insured.

We then looked at the rise of paid “instant reply providers”, strangers who earn money simply by responding immediately to people who need to vent, revealing how attention and emotional validation have become commodities. And finally, we examined how a factory error turned a sad-faced toy horse into an internet sensation, resonating with overworked netizens who saw their own burnout reflected in its teary expression.