“Brainrot” used to be just an insult online. Then it became a label, and now it’s all over TikTok in many different forms. One of the weirdest branches of it is called Italian brainrot, and it has ...

Italian brain rot is a niche form of memes that went viral in January 2025. Photo by Michele Bitetto/Unsplash If we’re lucky in the Opinion section, we work through our beliefs completely and support ...

Roblox’s Steal a Brainrot, based on “Italian Brainrot” memes, has become a breakout hit—the Roblox/Fortnite game recently hit almost 24 million players in a single day. Roblox is the gaming hub of ...

I have to admit that when my 10-year-old daughter first told me that the kids in her class have gotten into Italian brainrot, I showed no curiosity whatsoever. I knew from the name that it was likely ...

The birthday boy was turning 7, and the party had everything you might expect: balloons. A bounce house. And lots and lots of brainrot. How do I know this? Because as a mom of four, it's become my job ...

In a Japanese shop selling pocket-money trinkets, there is a rack of toys, stickers and keyrings based on a global crew of AI-generated characters that almost every child knows about -- and very few ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Leslie Katz covers the intersection of culture, science and tech. Lirili Larila, an elephant-cactus hybrid, is one of the breakout ...

Táparo, a 31-year-old from the Santa Catarina region of Brazil, is an early pioneer of Italian brainrot music, a burgeoning macro-genre that folds the cast of characters into songs for every possible ...

Ballerina Cappuccina, as depicted by @brainrotpumpfun, is one of the most well-known (and least controversial) Italian brain-rot characters. Photo: @brainrotpumpfun via TikTok Even if it hasn’t ...