Girl Employee

34 Episodes
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By: Morgane Billuart and Carmen Hines

Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss visual culture and platform capitalism.

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Ep. 34 - Automated Emotional Support
Ep. 34 - Automated Emotional Support episode artwork
Today at 6:00 AM

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Carmen talks about the bot Abby, 'Your AI Ally', and how automated emotional support works within a corporate environment and outside of it, as well as its specifics.

Thanks for listening to Girl Employee. 

@billuartmc

@carmen_lael_hines


Ep.33 - How To Not Be a Neoliberal Curator With Una Gjerde
Ep.33 - How To Not Be a Neoliberal Curator With Una Gjerde episode artwork
05/24/2026

Hello everyone, and welcome back to Girl Employee. In this episode, Carmen speaks with Una Gjerde, a producer, critic, editor, and curator based in Oslo, Norway. Together, they discuss Una's practice and their respective experiences as curators.

https://www.instagram.com/unagjerde/

https://curatorlab.se/una-mathiesen-gjerde/

https://indexfoundation.se/talks-and-events/breaking-the-course-of-the-european-boomerang-screening-curated-by-una-gjerde-and-krisztian-toeroek 

https://www.billedkunstnerneioslo.no/en/about-boa/


GIRL EMPLOYEE is a podcast about technology and visual culture by Morgane Billuart and Carmen Lael Hines. If you identify as a woman and would like to present your r...


Ep. 32 - Ever Since I was a Little Girl I've Loved Information
Ep. 32 - Ever Since I was a Little Girl I've Loved Information episode artwork
03/24/2026

On 7 February, we live-recorded an episode of our podcast @Pluto as part of a curated series of performances by @Mantis. Here, you will find a re-recorded version of the episode in English. A variation of this performance will be printed in the upcoming edited volume, The GIRL READER, edited by Mela Miekus and Mita Medri, soon to be published by SET MARGINS. 

GIRL EMPLOYEE is a podcast about technology and visual culture by Morgane Billuart and Carmen Lael Hines.

If you identify as a woman and would like to present you research on our podcast, d...


Ep 31 - First Phone and the Ontologies of Technology with Ruba Al-Sweel
Ep 31 - First Phone and the Ontologies of Technology with Ruba Al-Sweel episode artwork
12/11/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today, we are in conversation with artist Ruba Al-Sweel, talking about art and film-making, research on hardware supremacy, and the ecologies of scaled-up technologies, specifically e-waste. 

You can find out about Ruba's work on her Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/rrrrrruuuuuubbbbbbzzzzzz/ 


Ep.30 - Community Theory with Ester Freider
Ep.30 - Community Theory with Ester Freider episode artwork
11/27/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Ester Freider talks about the online community she built through her Instagram account 'EveryoneIsaGirl', as well as some of her experience with community theory and her love of the network. 

Thanks for listening to Girl Employee. 

*Matt Colquhoun now refers to themselves as Mattie * and with they/them.

EIAG:
instagram.com/everyoneisagirl
everyoneisagirl.cargo.site
everyoneisagirl.substack.com

Me:
instagram.com/stargir1z 
linktr.ee/esterfreider
https://www.are.na/ester-freider/channels
esterfreider.substack.com


Ep. 29 - LLM and heartbreak and LLM as heartbreak
Ep. 29 - LLM and heartbreak and LLM as heartbreak episode artwork
11/21/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Carmen presents some of her research and insights on LLMs as tools to process heartbreaks, or, perhaps, linger in nostalgia and melancholia.

Thanks for listening to Girl Employee. 



Ep. 28 - What are XenoVisual Studies?
Ep. 28 - What are XenoVisual Studies? episode artwork
11/02/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Carmen discussed XenoVisual Studies with Mar Osés, Pilar del Puerto, and Esther Rizo-Casado, a collective network for artistic experimentation and critical thought that examines how emerging technologies redefine visual aesthetics, influencing our perception of reality, identity, and society.

- XenoVisual Studies, 2024, www.xenovisualstudies.com

- Hester, H. (2018) Xenofeminism. Polity Press.

- Laboria Cuboniks. Xenofeminism: A Politics for Alienation. (2015) laboriacuboniks.net/manifesto/xenofeminism-a-politics-for-alienation/

- Rizo-Casado, E. (2024) Xeno-Tuning: Dissolving Hegemonic Identities in Algorithmic Multiplicity. A Peer Review Journal About. https://aprja.net//art...


Ep.27 - Digital Occultism with Sophie Publig and Mikkel Rørbo
Ep.27 - Digital Occultism with Sophie Publig and Mikkel Rørbo episode artwork
09/13/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Sophie Publig and Mikkel Rørbo share their recent research on the language of occultism and its pervasive online presence.

You can find more about the research and their work here :

https://www.are.na/mikkel-rorbo/digital-occultism-klm4eqbcq8k

https://www.instagram.com/publig.enemy/
https://www.instagram.com/nonstalgianonsense/



Ep. 26 - The Marketization of the Occult Online
Ep. 26 - The Marketization of the Occult Online episode artwork
09/03/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today’s special episode, Morgane shares research on The Marketization of the Occult Online, illustrated through her project Gifted, filmed in 2023.

https://vimeo.com/727564540

Thanks for listening to Girl Employee.


Ep. 24 - Trad Wives, New Media and its Discontents
Ep. 24 - Trad Wives, New Media and its Discontents episode artwork
08/14/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! In today's special episode, Carmen will share some research on trad wives and feminine lifestyle aesthetics. 

Thanks for listening to Girl Employee.



Ep. 23 - Corporate Aesthetics with Muj Abdulzade
Ep. 23 - Corporate Aesthetics with Muj Abdulzade episode artwork
06/23/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today's special episode is an interview with Muj Abdulzade on corporate aesthetics, performativity in the workplace, and graphic design as an investigative practice.

You can learn more about Muj's work:

Slow Mondays: https://substack.com/@slowmondays
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imujabd/

Office Aesthetics, Paola Jalili: https://paolajalili.xyz/office-aesthetics/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/office.aesthetics/

Office sirens: https://networkcultures.org/longform/2024/09/23/drown-your-laptop/

https://officemuseum.online/index.html
<...


Ep. 22 - Techno-Spirituality with Anan Fries
Ep. 22 - Techno-Spirituality with Anan Fries episode artwork
05/19/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today's special episode is an interview with Anan Fries and their research on technology, spirituality and digital rituals. 

You can learn more about Anan's work:  

https://ananfries.net/
https://www.instagram.com/hairygaze/
https://www.plurality.net/
https://www.meghanogieblyn.com/events

Thanks for listening!


Ep. 21 - Woman at Work with Lua Vollaard
Ep. 21 - Woman at Work with Lua Vollaard episode artwork
04/30/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today's special episode is an interview with Lua Vollaard and her fascinating research on women and work, women and computing, and much more. 

You can learn more about Lua's Work through her Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/fangedluamena/ 

In general, you can support the research, find bibliographies, and make recommendations through patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 20 - Social Media Love Gurus
Ep. 20 - Social Media Love Gurus episode artwork
02/27/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today's special episode is about Social Media Love Gurus and our experience with those... You can find more recommendations on our Patreon reading list!

https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-20-media-123226336?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link


In general, you can support the research, find bibliographies, and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.19 - 2024 Readings : Academia versus the Outside World and Female Cyborgs in Soviet Cinema
Ep.19 -  2024 Readings : Academia versus the Outside World and Female Cyborgs in Soviet Cinema episode artwork
01/17/2025

Welcome back to Girl Employee! Today's special episode wraps up 2024 as we share insights on two pieces of writing we particularly enjoyed. You can find more recommendations on our Patreon reading list!

https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-18-vs-in-119974242?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_fan&utm_content=web_share 


In general, you can support the research, find bibliographies, and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.18 - Girl Online with Sophie Publig
Ep.18 - Girl Online with Sophie Publig episode artwork
11/27/2024

Welcome back to Girl Employee! We’re thrilled to have a very special guest joining us today—an exceptional researcher and a dear friend, Sophie Publig. In this episode, Sophie will dive into some of her latest groundbreaking research projects, offering us her insights on the concept and aesthetics of "the girl online."

Credit for the image is @sensitivesensualist


You can support the research, find bibliographies, and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.17 - Dead Internet Theory and Internet Studies
Ep.17 - Dead Internet Theory and Internet Studies episode artwork
11/16/2024

Welcome back to girl employee. This month, we'll share some thoughts and discoveries on the dead internet theory and how it might challenge the field of critical internet studies and digital cultures at large.

You can support the research, find bibliographies, and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 16 - Generative AI Aesthetics & Architecture
Ep. 16 - Generative AI Aesthetics & Architecture episode artwork
10/21/2024

Welcome back to girl employee. This month, we'll share some thoughts on how generative AI impacts the research and development of architecture, and ways to remain critical or creative with such tools.

The image was generated with the following prompt: A home designed for a really cool person with a small cat.  It should be minimalistic and all light green. The furniture can be of a trendy modernist/Scandinavian style, with an urban, industrial feel. It should feel neither extremely feminine nor masculine. There should be spaces for existential questioning, as well as social activities. No hanging l...


Ep.15 - Video Game Graphics : Why so Cinematic?
Ep.15 - Video Game Graphics : Why so Cinematic? episode artwork
09/28/2024

Welcome back to girl employee. This month, we'll share some thoughts on the most recent video game graphics developments, the cinematic potential of game engines, and their public reception.

You can support the research and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Episode 14 - Podcast, Listening and Platform Temporalities
Episode 14 - Podcast, Listening and Platform Temporalities episode artwork
08/30/2024

Welcome back to girl employee. This month, we'll share some thoughts we produced on the history of podcasts and why sound now, produced in the context of a performance at the Salzburg Modern Museum.


A performance part of Listen to It Like You Haven’t Been Born Yet, Tell It as if You Are Still in the Surrogate Womb

How deeply are we attuned to the technological systems we place ourselves in and we place in ourselves? This program will focus on the role of platform capitalism in shaping and orienting users’ bodies, gender, and...


Episode 13 - AI PornBots
Episode 13 - AI PornBots episode artwork
06/26/2024

Welcome to the 13th episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, Carmen is presenting her latest research on the subject of AI pornbots and the personalized porn industry.  We will discuss the technicities and possibilities of such advancements, as well as the perspective of "authentic" still automated intimacy. 

You can support the research and make recommendations through: patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Episode 12 - Design Accessibility and Canva's Aesthetics
Episode 12 -  Design Accessibility and Canva's Aesthetics episode artwork
05/30/2024

Welcome to the 12th episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing the platform CANVA and its template, designs, and accessibility. We'll also dive a little deeper into the concept of "design classicism" and the history of desktop designing/design software. 

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 11 - Platform criticism on Platforms?
Ep. 11 - Platform criticism on Platforms? episode artwork
05/09/2024

Welcome to the 11th episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing the possibility of boosting our posts on IG to reach a broader audience and the ideological contradictions that come with doing platform criticism on platforms. 

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 10 - Big Tech Merges and Post-Capitalist Animism
Ep. 10 - Big Tech Merges and Post-Capitalist Animism episode artwork
03/23/2024

Welcome to the 10th episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing the recent merge between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard and its possible metaphorical meaning for the times we're living in. 

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 9 - MMOs and Economic Ideologies
Ep. 9 - MMOs and Economic Ideologies episode artwork
02/27/2024

During this 9th episode, we will discuss the history of MMOs and how their business models shifted over time, leading online players to question issues related to fairness, meritocracy, but also political ideologies.  

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee



Ep.8 - Femtech Co-Reading
Ep.8 - Femtech Co-Reading episode artwork
02/10/2024

The book Cycles, the Sacred and the Doomed has been published!

You can order it here :

https://www.setmargins.press/books/cycles-the-sacred-and-the-doomed/

'In a world propelled by swift technological progress and perpetual obsolescence, women frequently find themselves adapting and altering their daily experiences to remain functional. In the 21st century, as technology purports to comprehensively assess and address women’s conditions and physical discomfort, Cycles, the Sacred, and the Doomed delves deeply into the realm of female health technologies, revealing a space where science, holistic methods, and mythology converge. This book challenges the id...


Ep. 7 - Love is blind, or love in the time of speculative finance
Ep. 7 - Love is blind, or love in the time of speculative finance episode artwork
12/22/2023

Welcome to the seventh episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, Carmen will introduce us to the world of the TV show Love is Blind and its tales, and speculative finance. Welcome to the world of distancing, pod-enhancers, and monogamous story-telling.

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.6 - AI lovers with Amy Boulton
Ep.6 - AI lovers with Amy Boulton episode artwork
11/16/2023

Welcome to the sixth episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing AI lovers and partnerships with artist and researcher Amy Boulton.

@amyboulton_
amyboulton.info

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.6 - AI lovers with Amy Boulton
Ep.6 - AI lovers with Amy Boulton episode artwork
11/16/2023

Welcome to the sixth episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing AI lovers and partnerships with artist and researcher Amy Boulton.

@amyboulton_
amyboulton.info


Ep. 5 - Femtech and the Glitch Ideology
Ep. 5 - Femtech and the Glitch Ideology episode artwork
#5
10/17/2023

Welcome to the fifth episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're discussing a topic that is very dear to us and that brought us together. Welcome to the world of  Femtech and its possible glitches within our economy.

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 4 - The Subversion of the Attention Economy
Ep. 4 - The Subversion of the Attention Economy episode artwork
#4
10/02/2023

Welcome to the fourth episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're talking with Luca H. about the subversion of the attention economy and its strategies.

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep.3 - Swiping cities : the Urbanism of Dating Apps
Ep.3 - Swiping cities : the Urbanism of Dating Apps episode artwork
#3
09/05/2023

Welcome to the third episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're talking about bumble brew cafe and the ways in which dating apps attempt to move from the screen interface to the physical world.

*CORRECTION: Bumble is worth 903 million DOLLARS, not euros.

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee


Ep. 2 - The Gamification of Life
Ep. 2 - The Gamification of Life episode artwork
#2
07/21/2023

Welcome to the second episode of GirlEmployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, we're examining the concept of gamification and its everyday manifestations.

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee



Ep.1 - The etymology of #girlboss
Ep.1 - The etymology of #girlboss episode artwork
#1
07/02/2023

Welcome to the first episode of Girlemployee, a podcast where Carmen Hines and Morgane Billuart discuss topics around visual culture and platform capitalism. Today, girl bosses are getting roasted.

**correction: Forbes named Sophia Amoruso richest self-made woman in America in 2016

You can support the research and make recommendations through : patreon.com/GirlEmployee