I'd say it's a 50/50 on work related and just screwing around.
And sidenote I am not sure where term "ping you" came from, but it needs to go away. It honestly conveys the message I don't need to or want to talk to the person that said it.
I assume it's like using sports euphemisms in the office to convey a concept... this is likely a military euphemism (from radar/sonar). On one hand I don't mind it because it removes the specifics about how the person will contact you, it just simply states that they will contact you (and the method may vary depending on the time of day/week). Sure, there are other ways to say that, just as there are other ways to say something is "on deck" or you're "punting" a decision.
Honestly, I hardly acknowledge those ping requests anymore. I'm sure there is a packet loss pun, but it's late and I'm tired.
It's weird, isn't it. We all have our triggers, I suppose.
For example, I assume anyone who explicitly qualifies only a small number of their comments with 'tbh' or 'Honestly...' is lying to me the rest of the time.