We’re two weeks into the new year, and I still can’t stop thinking of my favorite stories that I covered in 2025. These are the ones that have stuck most in my mind since the ball dropped on December 31, 2025… and I covered a lot of stories in 2025. Take a look.
1. Billionaire, NFT-Shi—ing Robot Dogs
If there’s anything that symbolizes the mood of the country in this day and age, it’s this art installation in Miami Beach last December that saw one artist slap Elon Musk’s, Bill Gates’, and Jeff Bezos’ (among others’) heads onto robot dogs so that they could periodically squat and expel AI-generated NFTs.
2. easter eggs of roku city
This was a fun one, and judging by the reception it got, lots of you have also spent countless hours scrolling the whimsical, scrolling background screen of Roku streaming devices called Roku City. As the only streaming device service with a sense of fun and whimsy, Roku has packed Roku City with dozens, maybe more than a hundred, homages to TV shows and films, both classic and trending.
3. pimsleur language learning app
Any story that downplays how much of a dope I am and instead highlights my occasional success is a favorite. Gotta cherish those rare gems. After decades spent as a subpar practitioner of various languages, I found magic with the Pimsleur language learning app. It isn’t cheap, but it was good enough to get me conversational in Spanish and Swahili, with a semi-working knowledge of French.
4. a telephone chat with chatgpt
Back in January, OpenAI announced that you could now have telephone chats with ChatGPT. Given how often the nascent AI chatbot had ticked me off over text, I didn’t have high hopes. And ChatGPT delivered… on everything. Frustration, giggles, and a few attempts at talking to it about generative AI, whiskey recommendations, and the meaning of life.
5. givingtuesday
I felt this story didn’t get its due because it was pegged to GivingTuesday, the day after Cyber Monday, and so fell out of the news cycle. But any day is a good day to donate a bit of extra cash—whatever you can spare—to worthy causes. These organizations are personal favorites. They do good work. It may be far from GivingTuesday now, but keep them in mind the next time you feel like a jolt of feeling (and doing) good.
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