By: Ariel Ludwick 

     As the snow falls, Spotify Wrapped appears, and the holidays are right around the corner; as the year slowly comes to an end. This year in particular, trends have shaped everyday life, advertisements, and, as always, the internet.  

     According to hootsuite.com, one of the most viral trends has resulted from advancements in AI. After the popular app Duolingo resorted to relying on AI for many features on its platform and advertising, AI became more and more popular and common online. Apps like ChatGPT and Gauth have been gaining downloads, as ChatGPT has become #1 on the productivity charts on the Apple app store with 4.9/5 stars and Gauth has become #1 on the education charts on the Apple app store with 4.8/5 stars. 

     Hootsuite.com also listed brands participating in comment sections as a viral trend. The article explains, “These days, you can scroll down to the comments section of almost any social post and find a brand or two chiming in on the conversation.” To promote brand popularity, especially for NFL teams, brands have taken part in social media by not only posting but also commenting on viral posts.  

     As for students here at Eisenhower, many agree that “6-7” has been the worst trend, but not in a negative way. “I think trends have been positive for the most part; there really haven’t been any bad trends to make things negative,” explained senior Alexis Stec. “My favorite trend has definitely been bootcut jeans and turquoise jewelry trending again.”  

     According to a poll, other students believe the best trends include the TikTok trends featuring the audio “I want a free bag of chips” and Hozier’s yell from the song “Northern Attitude” by Noah Kahan. 

     Stec explained that the most impactful trend has been the huge advancements made in AI, especially with Sora AI clips and AI movie trailers seizing popularity the internet. She believes that next year there could be a new trend with our phones or technology, similar to AI. 

     Contradicting that, senior Emma Jameson described that she enjoyed a trend in which people are distancing themselves from technology and the internet. She references an architecturaldigest.com article about the topic, which reads, “One of the latest home trends to take hold, particularly among millennials and zoomers, is a nostalgic embrace of 90s and early-aughts technology.”  

     Overall, 2025 was just as engulfed in trends as previous years have been recently, with the internet spreading trends like wildfire and shaping the year.