Posthuman icons: Virtual YouTubers' bodies beyond the cyborg.

This article examines the bodies of virtual YouTubers (VTubers)—digital avatars animated by motion-tracking software—through the concept of cyborg imagery, a framework that explores the entanglement of human and machine beyond traditional binaries. Focusing on three prominent VTubers—Miquela Sousa, Ai Angel, and CodeMiko—it analyzes how their avatars traverse overlapping digital and physical environments, challenging conventional notions of embodiment by blending semiotic (symbolic) and material elements. The study argues that while the cyborg figure offers useful insights, it is limited in capturing VTubers’ complex technocultural embodiments, which also incorporate spiritual and transcultural iconographies, leading to the proposal of VTubers as “posthuman icons.” Methodologically, the research combines netnography, critical technocultural discourse analysis, and digital fieldnotes to explore how VTubers’ bodies are visually and discursively negotiated within digital cultures, highlighting the role of techno-animism in shaping perceptions of animation and corporeality.