The Vergeâs annual summer âinâ and âoutâ list
In the AI slop-loaded, algorithm-powered modern reality, trends come and go â and the tech industry is no different. For the last few years, The Verge staff has compiled a selection of things that are IN for summer and OUT for summer â and each time there are some strong feelings. (Here are the last two yearsâ predictions.) Letâs do it again!
The Vergeâs annual summer âinâ and âoutâ list
Whatâs in, whatâs out, and whatâs a bit of both this summer.
The Vergeâs annual summer âinâ and âoutâ list
Whatâs in, whatâs out, and whatâs a bit of both this summer.
Mia Sato, senior report
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Motion sickness glasses | AI âpervertâ glasses |
| Fiber | Protein |
| Bootleg sports merch | Official tech company merch |
| Floating in water | Touching grass |
Meredith Haggerty, editor
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| The great New York renaissance | The Great American State Fair |
| The Knicks garbage can | Taylor Swiftâs MSG wedding |
| The Invite | Believing Olivia Wilde is a bad director |
| Seeing through your own human eyes | The Kylie Jenner Meta glasses |
Hayden Field, senior AI reporter
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| The NYC ferry | The NYC subway (sorry itâs too hot rn) |
| Using AI to draft letters to your landlord | Using AI to draft breakup texts, or anything else personal |
| Letterboxd | Threads |
| Absolutely unhinged design ideas that AI could never come up with | Millennial minimalism |
Victoria Song, senior dystopia reviewer
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Flintstones vitamins | Gray market peptides |
| Drugstore moisturizer | Looksmaxxing |
| The FDA approving a new sunscreen filter | Whatever it is RFK Jr. is doing |
| Writing in an analog journal | AI wearables that record everything you do |
| Accepting we will all die | Whatever it is Bryan Johnson is doing |
TC Sottek, senior editor
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| EverQuest (2026) | EverQuest (1999) |
| Entire bootleg movies on TikTok | 20-part âstoryâ edits on TikTok |
| Boston as the most Scottish city in the US | Boston as the most Irish city in the US |
Kevin McShane, editorial director audio/video
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| A single plain text file | Vibecoding your own to-do app |
| Silo season three | Ted Lasso season four |
| Vertical sitcoms | Vertical dramas |
Kevin Nguyen, deputy editor
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Any movie theater that does not serve food to your seat | Alamo Drafthouse |
| Proton Mail | Gmail |
| Buying refurbished devices | Buying new devices |
Marina Galperina, senior tech editor
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Leaks | Press releases |
| Practical effects | Generative AI in movies |
| Making computers | Buying computers |
| Webrings | X, the everything app |
| Letting your phone battery die | Doomscrolling |
Gaby Del Valle, policy reporter
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Being a bandwagon sports fan | Rivalries â lifelong, heated, etc |
| Gelato | Frozen yogurt |
| Dua Lipaâs joie de vivre | Kylie Jennerâs whole deal |
| Mineral sunscreen | Beef tallow âsunscreenâ |
Antonio DiBenedetto, reviewer
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Friendslop games | Live-service games |
| Expensive PC gaming | Expensive console gaming |
| xboX | XBOX |
Liz Lopatto, senior internet typist
IN | OUT |
|---|---|
| Unconstitutional Iran war | Peace |
| The shortest inseam you can find and/or make | Pants |
| Ceasefire | Unconstitutional Iran war |
| World Cup | Owala tumblers and other adult sippy cups |
| Unconstitutional Iran war | Ceasefire |
| Major League Cricket (Go Unicorns!) | Major League Baseball |
| Ceasefire | Unconstitutional Iran war |
| McCartney II | Taylor Swift |
| Unconstitutional Iran war | Ceasefire |
| Excommunication | JD Vance |
| Ceasefire | Unconstitutional Iran war |
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