Ben is the talking dog from Talking Ben the Dog, the virtual pet app released by Outfit7 in 2011 as part of the Talking Tom and Friends series. Players could call him on an in-game phone and get deadpan yes, no and laughing responses. In early 2022 the phone-call format exploded on TikTok and YouTube, with creators filming absurd late-night calls to Ben. The clipped, unimpressed replies became a reusable reaction language, which is why the short voice bites still circulate in memes and edits today.