From friendly smiley faces to cheeky aubergines, emojis now form a staple part of many of our day–to–day messages.
Despite their popularity, one emoji has taken social media by surprise this week.
Baffled X users have spotted a secret message hidden in Apple’s version of the paper emoji.
‘Just found out the paper emoji has an actual message,’ one bemused fan explained in a now–viral video on the social media platform.
Many viewers questioned whether this was a scam, with one claiming it would be ‘wild if true’.
However, the secret message is very much real, and is a cheeky easter egg snuck in by Apple.
‘Most platforms indicate text with dark lines,’ Emojipedia explains on its description for the paper emoji.
‘Apple’s design features an easter egg, addressed Dear Katie and signed Take care from John Appleseed with the text of its 1997–2002 Crazy Ones/Think Different ad campaign.’
Baffled X users have spotted a secret message hidden in Apple’s version of the paper emoji
‘Just found out the paper emoji has an actual message,’ one bemused fan explained in a now–viral video on the social media platform
The secret message was shared on X by user @White_Rabbit_OG, in a video that has now been viewed over 1.8 million times.
‘Did you know?’ they tweeted alongside the video.
Hundreds of viewers have replied, with many questioning the authenticity of the secret message.
‘Nah I just saw this and got sucked in,’ one sceptic replied.
Another added: ‘Nah it’s fake.’
And one joked: ‘I was 100% sure i was getting trolled and this was gonna be the Jersey Shore note to Sam lol.’
However, zooming in on the emoji, you really can see a secret message.
‘Dear Kate, Here’s to the crazy ones,’ the message reads.
Zooming in on the emoji, you really can see a secret message. As Emojipedia points out, this comes from Apple’s Think Different advertising campaign, which ran from 1997–2002
‘The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules.
‘You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or villify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.
‘Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.
‘Because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.’
It finishes: ‘Take care, John Appleseed.’
As Emojipedia points out, this message comes from Apple’s Think Different advertising campaign, which ran from 1997–2002.
Meanwhile, John Appleseed is the name that Apple uses in all its demos, even today.
The paper emoji isn’t the only one of Apple’s characters to have a secret message hidden within it.
The scroll emoji has the same message etched onto it, while the credit card emoji is signed by John Appleseed.
The news comes shortly after nine brand new emojis were revealed to be coming later this year.
The new emojis were quietly uploaded to Unicode’s public document archives late last year, and have now been revealed by Emojipedia.
Users will have access to two new hand gestures – leftward and rightward thumbs – as well as a squinting face.
Other new options include a meteor, a lighthouse, and a monarch butterfly.
However, the emoji that really has people excited is the pickle – with some suggesting it could replace the aubergine, which is often used to refer to a penis.
