The Vergecast 2025 year in review
439 snips
Dec 9, 2025 
Joining Nilay and David, Joanna Stern, a senior tech columnist at the Wall Street Journal, dives into a lively discussion about the standout tech moments of 2025. They dissect the successes and failures of products, including a surprising victory from Google Gemini and the disappointment of AI agents. The trio debates the impact of major policy moves on big tech and ruminates on the biggest AI-related scandals of the year. Expect lively opinions on gadget of the year and the buzzwords that should be buried!
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Feed Pollution From Viral AI Content
- Viral AI-generated content (deepfakes, Sora, Suno covers) made feeds feel polluted and raised quality concerns.
- David said feeds became saturated with suspicious or fake content, making scrolling and trust more fraught.
A Policy Fight Became A Cultural Flashpoint
- The Jimmy Kimmel-Brendan Carr episode crystallized how policy actions can rapidly reshape public debate over free speech.
- Nilay emphasized this incident's broad cultural and political repercussions in 2025.
Watch Linux And Steam Hardware Next Year
- Nilay advised watching Valve/Linux and Steam machine efforts as a potential desktop shift for gaming.
- He argued Linux on the desktop could undercut Windows PC assumptions and reset console competition.