Lil Miquela
Last reviewed by a human: 2026-07-10
Unclaimed page — not yet verified by VerifiedHer. Is this you?
Lil Miquela is not a real person. She is a CGI character launched on Instagram on April 23, 2016 by Brud, a Los Angeles startup founded by Trevor McFedries and Sara DeCou, and is widely considered the influencer who made the entire "virtual influencer" category mainstream. For her first two years online, Brud deliberately left her nature ambiguous — she called herself a "robot" in captions but never confirmed it, and fans genuinely argued over whether she was a real model, a heavily edited photo, or a machine. That ambiguity ended in April 2018, when a scripted "hacking" storyline involving a rival character, Bermuda, publicly revealed both as Brud creations. Weeks later she was named to TIME's "25 Most Influential People on the Internet," and she went on to front campaigns for Calvin Klein (with Bella Hadid), Prada, Samsung, and BMW, plus a music career starting with the 2017 single "Not Mine." Brud was acquired by Dapper Labs (the NFT company behind NBA Top Shot) in an all-equity deal in October 2021; McFedries has continued leading the Miquela work inside Dapper's ecosystem, with the company floating plans to eventually hand control to a community-run DAO. Reporting from 2024 describes a visible slowdown — fewer posts, no new music, muted response to newer brand deals — though her Instagram and TikTok accounts (both @lilmiquela) remain live into 2025-2026. She matters for the AI-labeling era as the reverse case study: a persona that spent years coy about its own reality, then chose a loud, deliberate disclosure moment — the opposite of today's undisclosed AI "girls" that never confirm or deny. This page is unclaimed and compiled from public sources.
Never lose Lil Miquela
When her accounts move — a new one appears, or one goes down — you'll know first. No spam, ever. Just her.
You're joining her fan list — it belongs to her, and we run it. Never sold, never shared with anyone else. One-click unsubscribe in every message.
All of her, everywhere — every known account
- Instagram @lilmiquela Appears official Long-running primary account. Follower counts reported across sources conflict (roughly 2M-2.6M depending on the source and date); treat any specific figure as approximate.
- TikTok @lilmiquela Appears official Same handle as Instagram; has posted video content into 2025, which cuts against third-party trackers listing her as fully inactive.
- X (Twitter) @lilmiquela Unverified Same handle as Instagram/TikTok; posting frequency much lower than the 2018 peak.
- Operator (via acquisition) Dapper Labs Appears official Dapper Labs acquired Brud (Miquela's creator company) in October 2021; co-founder Trevor McFedries has continued associated work inside Dapper's ecosystem. Dapper Labs has since removed the announcement from its newsroom — this links to the archived copy.
Scam & impersonation warnings
- Sources disagree on how active she currently is: VirtualHumans.org's tracker lists her as "Inactive or Discontinued," while her Instagram/TikTok accounts remain live with occasional posts into 2025-2026 and Wikipedia cites a 2025 brand partnership. Treat "is she still active" as an evolving, contested question rather than a settled fact.
- Follower counts and annual-earnings figures circulating online (some claims run as high as $10-12M/year) are industry estimates from secondary sources, not confirmed by Brud/Dapper Labs — treat specific numbers as rough estimates.
- Copycat and fan accounts using "Miquela" or "lilmiquela" variants exist; only the handles above are well-corroborated as the original persona's accounts.
The documented facts
- Launched on Instagram April 23, 2016; created by Brud, a Los Angeles startup founded by Trevor McFedries and Sara DeCou Source: Wikipedia — Miquela · documented
- Spent roughly her first two years online without confirming whether she was human, CGI, or a physical robot; captions hinted she was a "robot" but never resolved the question Source: Endless Thread (WBUR), "RIP Lil Miquela," Apr 2024 · reported
- Publicly revealed as a Brud creation in April 2018 via a scripted "hacking" storyline in which a rival character, Bermuda, took over her account Source: Wikipedia — Miquela · documented
- Named to TIME's "25 Most Influential People on the Internet" in June 2018 Source: TIME, Jun 28, 2018 · documented
- Fronted brand campaigns including Calvin Klein (with Bella Hadid, 2018), Prada's February 2018 Instagram takeover, Samsung Galaxy (2019), and BMW; recording career includes debut single "Not Mine" (Aug 2017) and later releases with collaborators including Baauer Source: VirtualHumans.org profile · documented
- Brud (Miquela's creator/operator) was acquired by Dapper Labs, the NFT company behind NBA Top Shot, in an all-equity deal announced October 2021 Source: TechCrunch, Oct 4, 2021 · documented
- Posting cadence and cultural relevance visibly declined by 2024 — noticeably fewer posts, no new music, and muted response to a 2024 BMW spot compared to her 2018-era peak Source: Endless Thread (WBUR), "RIP Lil Miquela," Apr 2024 · reported
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