It was the best of times, it was the weirdest of times. It was, in a nutshell, a typically wild year in San Francisco. And the stories that cracked the top of The Standard’s traffic leaderboard show just how unwieldy and unpredictable the news was in 2025.
We had stomach-churning scandals. We had heartbreaking tragedies. We had insane city-versus-feds feuds. We had something called Slutcon. And through it all, we had The Standard’s mix of editorial curiosity, journalistic fearlessness, irreverent humor, and ceaseless gratitude that we get to cover such a damn interesting place.
What follows are the stories that resonated most with you, our readers. If you want even more where this came from in 2026, you can support our journalism by subscribing here.
Source: Photo illustration by The Standard
A military-tech gold rush has changed hearts and minds on campus.
By Jasmine Sun
Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/The Standard
To watch park ranger Amanda Barrows is to be faced with a disturbing question: If this is what it takes to help one unhoused person, how can we manage thousands? By Susan Freinkel
Source: Lara Litchfield-Kimber
Colden Kimber, 28, was killed in a “completely and utterly unprovoked” attack, prosecutors say. By Michael McLaughlin, George Kelly
Source: Autumn DeGrazia/The Standard
A time-honored college tradition has become a source of anxiety for international students who might consider traveling abroad. By Emily Shugerman
Source: Courtesy Charity Vargas/Presidio Trust
The federal agency was established by Congress in 1996 to oversee the 1,500-acre San Francisco park. By Gabe Greschler, Max Harrison-Caldwell, and George Kelly
Source: Photo Illustration by Kyle Victory
Rippling cofounder Prasanna Sankar said his wife’s affair broke their marriage. The true story is far more complicated. By Ezra Wallach
Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/The Standard
Public records and accounts from associates have unveiled a string of failed businesses and a growing tally of unpaid debts. By Kevin Truong, George Kelly, Jonah Owen Lamb, Michael McLaughlin, Kevin V. Nguyen, and Jon Steinberg
Source: Ashley Landis/Associated Press
Dynasties are supposed to have shelf lives. Don’t tell that to Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Steve Kerr. By Danny Emerman
Source: Illustration by Christina Lee
A visit to a three-day conference in the East Bay, where men paid thousands to learn how to not give women the ick. By Zara Stone
Source: Ulysses Ortega for The Standard
“I can’t do it; it’s a straight-up mockery of the original magic to me,” said one fan. By Carly Schwartz
Source: Rolf Schulten/Getty Images
An “exciting resurgence of energy” points to San Franciscans getting back into the office. By Jillian D’Onfro
Source: Soon Tani Beccaria Mochizuki for The Standard
Geoffrey Lee of Hamburger Project, Hand Roll Project, and Ju-Ni has stepped back from all three after screenshots surfaced of verbal abuse. By Astrid Kane
Source: brunocoelhopt/Getty Images
Deloitte is also ending the diversity goals it laid out for its workforce and business. By Rya Jetha
Source: Illustration by Ryan Haskins
May 7 was Real ID deadline day, so The Standard sent a reporter to fly without one. Would she make it to Reno and back? By Zara Stone
Source: ABC7 News
Soren Dixon had a blood alcohol concentration nearly 20 times the legal limit. By Stephanie K. Baer
Source: Thomas Sawano/The Standard
After a string of disasters, lenders are tapping the brakes on new mortgages and looking under the hood for everything. By Kevin V. Nguyen
Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/The Standard
Confusion and mix-ups have abounded, and one owner is fighting back with a petition. By Jillian D’Onfro
Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/The Standard
Online commenters have called the alleged use of Narcan on unsuspecting victims a “new strategy for moving bums out of your way.” Health experts say it could kill. By David Sjostedt
Source: Jungho Kim for The Standard
Two months after Kirk was assassinated, his Turning Point USA college campus tour stopped in Berkeley. It did not go well. By Josh Koehn
Source: Jim Wysocki
A reporter from The Standard visited the Ocheltree-Truong family in the home where they would soon die. New details and old messages shed light on the tragedy. By Garrett Leahy
Source: Illustration by The Standard / Getty
A modest (read: fake) proposal from the Google cofounder, who believes employees should work “at least” every weekday. And also every weekend-day. By Eli Grober
Source: Jason Henry for The Standard
Mercor’s 22-year-old CEO, Brendan Foody, imagines a future in which white-collar contractors earn riches teaching machines to behave like humans. By Rya Jetha
Source: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/The Standard
The Sixth Street drug market has found a new home. By David Sjostedt and Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez
Source: Illustration by David Huang
In an effort to make the cuisine more accessible, Jagalchi made shopping less appealing to its core customers. By Lena Park
Source: Photo illustration by The Standard
It was celebrated as a co-living utopia. There was just one catch: all the people who were evicted to make it happen. By Zara Stone