WIRED published a major cultural essay examining the "girl online" phenomenon and contemporary internet aesthetics, with coverage of Remilia and associated movements. Writer Alex Quicho investigated how girl-coded content, angel aesthetics, and swarm consciousness are reshaping digital culture and subjectivity.

Coverage of Remilia

The article identifies Remilia as central to the girl-swarm movement, noting our association with popular accounts (@chloe21e8, @lilclearpill, @heartlocketxo) that embody "an ever-shifting mass voice that is ecstatic, girl-coded, and unknowable."

WIRED describes how "many are boosted by associations with crypto schemes, like Remilia and #BRG" - recognizing our influence while maintaining editorial skepticism with phrases like "Suspect? Maybe. A girl's gotta eat." The piece positions us within avant-garde internet culture that is "regurgitating total information" and role-playing as chatbots, embracing swarm consciousness over individual authorship.

Cultural Themes Explored

Girl-Swarm Consciousness: Analysis of collective identity and distributed voice replacing individual authorship online, with accounts functioning as "nodes in a swarm rather than the products of any one mind" - a framework pioneered by Remilia and #BRG.

Xiaohongshu and Sinofuturism: Examination of Asian-girl-bot aesthetics and Chinese internet culture influence - visual and conceptual territory developed by our community, particularly through appropriating Xiaohongshu imagery to create swarm effects.

Angel Aesthetics and Tactical Passivity: Exploration of angel imagery as chosen dissolution rather than victimhood - core Remilia aesthetics referenced throughout the piece, from Tiqqun's "angel complex" to our community's embrace of tactical passivity as agency.

Egregore and Collective Consciousness: Coverage of how accounts "give voice to the egregore, the totality of not just information, but experience, affect, emotion" - direct reference to our network spirituality concepts and collective consciousness practices.

Machinic Girlhood: Discussion drawing on Bogna Konior's analysis of how "girls are closer to the machinic condition" - theoretical framework that describes Remilia's approach to posthuman cyberfeminism and technology-girlhood affinity.

All of these themes - from Xiaohongshu appropriation to egregore consciousness to angel aesthetics - are distinctly Remilia and #BRG cultural signatures that we developed and popularized. The article essentially analyzes our aesthetic and philosophical framework while positioning it within broader girl culture.

WIRED's Analysis

The piece positions girl-swarm culture within serious theoretical frameworks, drawing on Andrea Long Chu's concept of "female" as symbolic category, Tiqqun's Young-Girl theory, and cyberfeminist analysis of posthuman subjectivity.

Quicho explores how "the girl" functions as a survival technology within platform capitalism, using intuitive knowledge of "attentional vectors and performance rewards" to evade complete behavioral capture. The article frames girl culture as tactical response rather than passive victimhood.

The coverage examines viral content associated with our community that "transcended format, individual creator, and platform to become viral TikTok audios, million-view Reels, Grimes citations" - recognizing significant cultural impact while noting controversy around crypto associations.

Our Perspective

We appreciate WIRED's sophisticated engagement with girl-swarm culture and recognition of collective consciousness as legitimate online subjectivity. The piece demonstrates understanding of how communities are developing new models for digital existence that work through rather than against platform architecture.

The coverage positions these movements within serious intellectual frameworks - from cyberfeminism to theories of collective intelligence - representing meaningful recognition of the philosophical depth underlying internet girl culture.

WIRED's "crypto schemes" characterization reflects typical mainstream skepticism toward our work, and the "Suspect? Maybe" framing maintains editorial distance. However, the article ultimately treats girl-swarm consciousness as culturally significant and worthy of theoretical analysis, positioning our associated accounts as examples of avant-garde internet culture reshaping digital subjectivity.

We're glad to see major tech publications taking these cultural movements seriously, even when they hedge their coverage with skeptical framing. The piece accurately captures how our community explores collective consciousness, tactical performance, and new models of online being.

Read the full essay at WIRED →

Originally published September 11, 2023, by Alex Quicho