The top 10 Bay Area stories of 2025 — and what they mean for 2026

Self-driving cars merged onto Bay Area freeways, artificial intelligence reshaped classrooms and offices, and political battles over housing, immigration and public safety spilled into daily life in 2025.

Rather than a single defining moment, a series of technological, political and cultural shifts quietly altered how the region lives, works and governs itself.

Those changes drove major Bay Area stories with far-reaching consequences for the region’s economy, residents and culture — and in some cases, the world.