WARNING: Contains Potential Spoilers for Nightwing #121!In the ongoing debate over who the smartest member of the Bat-Family is, the contenders are typically Bruce “Robin” Drake. While each hero has demonstrated their nearly unparalleled intelligence through a myriad of impressive feats, Nightwing has recently reminded readers just how extraordinary one of these Bat-Family truly is when it comes to intellectual prowess.

...Batgirl more than earns her place as the World’s Greatest Hacker.

In Nightwing #120 by Dan Watters and Dexter Soy, Dick begins his investigation into Spheric Solutions—a company specializing in weapons designed to kill superheroes—by breaking into its facilities as Nightwing. However, his intelligence-gathering efforts are quickly thwarted by the company's heavily weaponized security system.

As a result, issue #121 sees the Original Boy Wonder shift tactics, opting for a subtler approach. Going in as Dick Grayson, he accepts an invitation from CEO Olivia Pearce to tour the facility. During their meeting, Dick covertly clones Pearce’s personal hard drive, securing the information he needs.

Nightwing Reveals Barbara Gordon Hacked the Pentagon… At 16 Years Old

Batgirl AKA Oracle AKA Barbara Gordon Is the Bat-Family’s Smartest Hero

Upon returning to the apartment he shares with Barbara, Dick reveals the cloned copy of Pearce’s hard drive to his long-time, on-and-off-again girlfriend. While Batgirl is impressed by Dick’s subtle tactics, she points out that the hard drive likely has “Pentagon-level encryption.” She then amends her statement, suggesting it might actually be Pentagon encryption, given Spheric Solutions’ government contracts. Despite this revelation, Dick remains unfazed, casually responding, “Good thing I know a girl who once hacked the Pentagon to win an argument with me about what was really in Area 51. When she was sixteen.”

While hacking into the Pentagon is an impressive accomplishment in itself, what makes this revelation even more remarkable is that Barbara achieved it at just 16—and on a whim. Pulling off such a feat is a testament to her incredible intelligence, especially considering this happened long before she became Oracle, a role that solidified her reputation as a tech genius. The fact that Barbara could hack the Pentagon before her tech journey officially began, coupled with her current ability to do so in just a few hours, strongly s the argument that Batgirl is the smartest member of the Bat-Family.

Barbara Gordon Has a Long List of Impressive Intelligence Feats

The New Watchtower’s Communications Are Thanks to Oracle

There are certainly those who will argue in favor of Tim or Bruce, and understandably so, as intelligence comes in many forms. To be fair, while Barbara is well-rounded in her intelligence, she perhaps sures Bruce and Tim primarily in tech-related expertise. Over the years, Barbara has firmly established technology as her domain, with countless examples to this. Recent stories further emphasize her prowess, such as Chip Zdarsky’s Batman run, where she hacks satellites, and Joshua Williamson’s DC ALL IN Special, which confirms Oracle as the mastermind behind the Watchtower’s communication systems. Thus, while Tim Drake’s Robin and Bruce Wayne’s Batman may forever hold the title of the World’s Greatest Detectives, Batgirl more than earns her place as the World’s Greatest Hacker.

Nightwing #121 is available now from DC Comics!