Nothing has really changed, more like the pressures of building negatives of living in the SFBA were building up and up, and black swan COVID broke the game of remote chicken where %33 of their staff were distributed all over america and they are realizing they don't want to go back. Apple is trying to return to the status quo, but now the game has changed, and they are dragging their feet about it.

As to what is good about the SFBA, well it has great weather and still has a large concentration of smart people to hire.

I have always been of the mindset that if companies were willing to pay SV salaries in cheap parts of the country they would be able to recruit smart people to move there. Money is an amazing motivator.