GigaChad

On October 16, 2017, a 4chan user described a photograph as "the perfect human specimen," and the internet agreed. GigaChad emerged from Russian photographer Krista Sudmalis's "Sleek'N'Tears" project—hyper-edited images of model Ernest Khalimov featuring a jawline that could cut glass and proportions that defy biology.

For years, the mystery was part of the appeal. Was he real? Photoshopped? An AI fever dream of masculinity? Khalimov's refusal to acknowledge the memes only fed the mythos. Then in April 2021, he finally spoke: "I like the memes you make. I'm just like you, maybe a little bigger."

The "Average Fan vs. Average Enjoyer" format turned GigaChad into the universal symbol of unbothered confidence. He doesn't argue. He doesn't explain. He simply exists, in stark black-and-white, as the visual shorthand for "I am right and I know it."

Seven years later, GigaChad hasn't aged—which tracks, since aging would require being bound by mortal constraints.