San Francisco

SF Crime Is So Bad Police Need Quad Bikes That Transform Into Jet Skis

Cops on Segways are so 1993 and no one takes them seriously. That’s why San Francisco now has cops on quadskis, the ATV that turns into a jet ski that turns whoever’s riding it into a kind of poor man’s James Bond. And at least one of them is being used to patrol the San…

Tech News Alissa Walker Jul 27

This Robot Is Hitchhiking Across the US (Please Don’t Steal His Boots)

If you happen to see a robot on the side of the road this summer, don’t be afraid to pick him up. That’s just hitchBOT, a friendly hitch-hiking robot trying to make his (her? its?) way from Boston to San Francisco. Designed by Canadian researchers, hitchBOT is part art project, part social experiment. Can robots…

Tech News Matt Novak Jul 17

I’d Live In These Apartments Built In the Middle of an Extra-Wide Street

Most American streets are far too wide, which uses up valuable urban space, is dangerous for pedestrians, and actually makes traffic worse. That’s why many cities are trying to hand over more street space to transit, biking and walking. But what if we took the lanes devoted to cars and turned it into housing? It…

Tech News Alissa Walker Jun 24

The Bay Area From 400 Miles Above the Earth’s Surface

Before you head off into the weekend, take a second to behold San Francisco as seen from Landsat 8, moving high above the Earth in its 99-minute-long orbital pattern. This shot was taken by Landsat this spring, and beyond being unbelievably beautiful, it’s also a great example of what Landsat does best: Give scientists a…

Space & Spaceflight Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan Jun 19

Clever video bends reality by flattening San Francisco’s hilly streets

Walking around in San Francisco can get tough because the city is just so damn hilly. Up and down and up and more up and you start to wish you could just flatten the streets. Karen Cheng and Ross Ching tweaked reality a bit by positioning the camera so it looks like those hilly streets…

Sploid Casey Chan Jun 8

Apple May Roll Out Its New Watch Typeface Across All Devices

In welcome news for those of us who couldn’t take another year squinting at that spindly, bad-for-screens typeface, 9 to 5 Mac is reporting that Apple will replace Helvetica Neue with its new San Francisco typeface for all operating systems. This is the font Apple designed in-house for the Watch—and if this is true, it’s…

Tech News Alissa Walker May 20

How the Crazy Cost of NYC and Bay Area Housing Hurts the US Economy

The cost of housing in New York and San Francisco has long since transcended into the realm of absurdity. But all those quaint, astronomically pricey brownstones and single family homes are part of a healthy national economy, right? Not exactly. An interesting study titled Why Do Cities Matter?, published today on the National Bureau of…

Tech News Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan May 14

The Golden Gate Bridge Almost Ended Up With a Bumble Bee Paint Job

The Golden Gate Bridge’s iconic “International Orange” paint job was a bit of a happy accident. If the United States Navy got its way, the landmark stretch of infrastructure would look like a bumble bee. That would’ve been just sad. The black-and-yellow stripe color scheme, of course, was a design that emphasized practicality and visibility.…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes May 7

San Francisco’s Plan to Turn Stadium Parking Into Affordable Housing

The affordable housing crisis in San Francisco has reached a fever pitch, with even George Lucas helping out. Here’s another smart solution that chips away at the problem: Swapping a parking lot with a new neighborhood, courtesy of one of the city’s most influential landowners, the San Francisco Giants. Right now, the swath of bayfront…

Tech News Alissa Walker May 5

This Photo of San Francisco Was Shot Just Minutes Ago From Space

What an amazing year we are living in! “San Francisco. I almost felt like I was with you as we flew overhead a few minutes ago,” NASA astronaut Scott Kelly posted on his Facebook page directly from the International Space Station. Wish we were with you space station commander!

Space & Spaceflight Attila Nagy Apr 27

Drones Buzz Golden Gate Bridge, Crashing and Generally Being Creepy

The quake-prone Bay Area is already a pretty precarious area for bridges, but now suspicious drone activity is also a concern for San Francisco’s famous Golden Gate. Officials are now reportedly spotting drones near the bridge several times a month, and one even crashed into the road. Those San Francisco officials understandably have some security…

Tech News Bryan Lufkin Apr 27

George Lucas Wants To Build Affordable Housing on His Skywalker Ranch

Having safely outsourced the Star Wars franchise, George Lucas can focus on his real estate projects. He’s got his museum in Chicago, and now, an affordable housing project proposed for his own Skywalker Ranch. Those who can’t afford San Francisco could live just over the Golden Gate Bridge in what’s otherwise one of the priciest…

Tech News Alissa Walker Apr 17

These incredible aerial views of San Francisco are just jaw dropping

My God, take a look at these photos. Master photographer Vincent LaForet captured San Francisco in such incredible detail and in such a fascinating perspective that it’s truly breathtaking. You can see the entire city—all 7 miles by 7 miles—stamped on the Earth with its beautiful bridges stretched across the sea. Click on the magnifying…

Sploid Casey Chan Mar 19

This Is How You Turn San Francisco Into Gotham City

Experimenting with black and white filmmaking and time lapse, Toby Harriman figured out a way to turn San Francisco into Gotham City. It’s a perfect example of how composing shots and using music turns a very identifiable city into a whole new one. [via Vimeo Staff Picks] Contact the author at [email protected].

io9 Katharine Trendacosta Feb 26

Dish Just Agreed To Blanket San Fran With This Crazy New Cellular Tech

Dish wants to be a mobile phone carrier. Dish wants it bad. And Steve Perlman—the genius behind QuickTime, WebTV and OnLive—has spent over a decade working on tech that could allegedly leapfrog our current cell networks. So guess who just teamed up to potentially revolutionize the mobile internet? Yep. Dish just agreed to lease some…

Tech News Sean Hollister Feb 24

Update: Science Fiction Bookstore Borderlands Will Stay Open!

Here’s a huge chunk of happy news to brighten your Sunday: San Francisco’s scifi and fantasy bookstore, Borderlands, will stay open for at least another year thanks to a successful sponsorship campaign. YAY! If you’ll recall, the beloved institution (which we here at io9 are huge fans of, for many obvious reasons … and the…

io9 Cheryl Eddy Feb 22

The CIA Once Ran Brothels And Dosed Unsuspecting Customers With LSD

For ten years during the Cold War, the CIA conducted mind-control experiments on unsuspecting San Franciscans. Dubbed Operation Midnight Climax, the program was packed with salacious details: a power-mad narcotics agent, a brothel equipped with two-way mirrors, and gallons of LSD. Top image: Surian Soosay/Flickr Operation Midnight Climax was one of a few operations involving…

io9 Cheryl Eddy Feb 20

Good night, San Francisco

San Francisco isn’t Gotham. That’s New York (or Chicago if you want to be wrong). San Francisco is too colorful, too weird, too positive and too future friendly to be the dark and gritty Gotham City. But Toby Harriman stripped the color of SF in this time lapse and man, the city by the bay…

Sploid Casey Chan Feb 12

That Time A Bankrupt Businessman Declared Himself Emperor Of America

For many years, Joshua Norton was a successful 19th-century businessman. Then he lost his entire fortune trying to take over San Francisco’s rice market. Here’s the story of how his fortunes flipped around one final time and made him Emperor of America. In response to this call for your take on history’s most fascinating figures,…

io9 Ria Misra Feb 11

A Bizarre Statistical Fact About Patents in San Francisco

I have discovered something extremely strange about San Francisco. It has to do with how many patents the city has produced in the past 25 years. One of the most fascinating things about urban life today is that city populations are growing to historically unprecedented sizes. Basically we’re at a stage in urban evolution that…

Tech News Annalee Newitz Feb 4

SF Crime Is So Bad Police Need Quad Bikes That Transform Into Jet Skis

This Robot Is Hitchhiking Across the US (Please Don’t Steal His Boots)

I’d Live In These Apartments Built In the Middle of an Extra-Wide Street

The Bay Area From 400 Miles Above the Earth’s Surface

Clever video bends reality by flattening San Francisco’s hilly streets

Apple May Roll Out Its New Watch Typeface Across All Devices

How the Crazy Cost of NYC and Bay Area Housing Hurts the US Economy

The Golden Gate Bridge Almost Ended Up With a Bumble Bee Paint Job

San Francisco’s Plan to Turn Stadium Parking Into Affordable Housing

This Photo of San Francisco Was Shot Just Minutes Ago From Space

Drones Buzz Golden Gate Bridge, Crashing and Generally Being Creepy

George Lucas Wants To Build Affordable Housing on His Skywalker Ranch

These incredible aerial views of San Francisco are just jaw dropping

This Is How You Turn San Francisco Into Gotham City

Dish Just Agreed To Blanket San Fran With This Crazy New Cellular Tech

Update: Science Fiction Bookstore Borderlands Will Stay Open!

The CIA Once Ran Brothels And Dosed Unsuspecting Customers With LSD

Good night, San Francisco

That Time A Bankrupt Businessman Declared Himself Emperor Of America

A Bizarre Statistical Fact About Patents in San Francisco

HP Laptop With Microsoft 365 Hits Record Low After Multiple Price Cuts, Now Cheaper Than A16 iPad

Artemis 2 Day 9: Follow the Mission With Our Live Updates 🔴

How the Hands Behind Rocky Got Hired for ‘Project Hail Mary’

Google Quietly Drops Nest Cam (2nd Gen) to All-Time Low on Amazon, Turning It Into a Budget Home Security Pick

Galaxy S26 Ultra Now Available for $480 as Samsung Expands Trade-In Offers With Extra Savings on Buds4 Pro

‘The ‘American Horror Story’ Reunion Could Be a Sequel to ‘Coven’

One of the Messiest Loose Ends from NFT Mania Has Finally Been Tied Up

The OpenAI Foundation’s New Alzheimer’s Effort Helps Demystify ‘AI Will Cure All Diseases’

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Let us help find what you are looking for...