Top AI & STEM Summer Camps in the Bay Area - 2026 Picks

Here's the rewrite:

This guide covers the Bay Area's best AI camps, LEGO robotics camps, and hands-on science programs for elementary through high school kids in 2026. Whether you're looking for a serious competition track or a first taste of engineering, there's something here for every age and budget.

Looking for camps near you? Use the menu on the right to jump to your region — San Francisco, South Bay, Peninsula, East Bay, or Tri-Valley. And if summer feels too far away, it's worth knowing that many of the same organizations run after-school programs and weekend STEM events throughout the school year — a great way to test your child's interest before committing to a full camp week.

On mobile? Scroll down to find dedicated sections for each area, plus a special list of overnight STEM camps for high school students. Don't overlook the community side either — Bay Area families have access to things most parents never stumble across, like free Stanford engineering workshops and museum STEM days that quietly fill up every season.

Camps marked 🏆 are independently verified as top-rated based on Bay Area Parent poll results, Yelp, and AIFunLab parent interviews across forums and review platforms (2025–2026).

How to choose the right Bay Area STEM camp

Not sure how much screen time a camp involves? It varies more than you'd think — a robotics camp built around LEGO Spike or Arduino is mostly hands-on building, while a game design or Scratch camp is almost entirely screen-based. If that distinction matters to your family, our guide on choosing coding and robotics programs with the least screen time breaks it down in detail — and most of what applies to year-round programs applies to camps too.

San Francisco STEM camps

Celsius and Beyond

• Ages: 7–14
• Location: Presidio · Richmond · Mission
• Cost: $650–$825/week
• Parents describe this as the "antithesis of a daycare camp." Real microscopes and chemicals, not toys. Highly praised for treating kids like actual scientists.

Tinkering School

• Ages: 7–17
• Location: The Presidio
• Cost: $850–$950/week
• Real drills and saws. Parents highlight emotional growth alongside technical confidence. Fills via lottery — register early.

STEMful

• Ages: 3–10
• Location: Bernal Heights · Mission
• Cost: $400–$700/week
• Gentle introduction to STEM. Sensory play meets foundational concepts like gravity and magnetism. Neighbourhood favourite for young kids.

Camp Tech Revolution

• Ages: 7–14
• Location: SFSU campus
• Cost: $750–$1,050/week
• AI, Roblox, and coding tracks. Better as a tech sampler than a deep-dive programme.

Want a year-round SF coding programme? See our coding and robotics classes.

South Bay STEM camps

Club SciKidz Silicon Valley

• Ages: 4–15
• Location: San Jose · Santa Clara · Mountain View
• Cost: $550–$700/week
• Best for niche science themes — veterinary science, space, chemistry — beyond generic coding.

Tech Interactive

• Ages: 4–15
• Location: San Jose
• Cost: $700–$800/week
• 1:5 staff-to-camper ratio. Includes IMAX Dome Theater. One of the most popular South Bay options.

FutureBytes

• Ages: 7–14
• Location: Santa Clara · Los Altos
• Cost: $650+/week · $110+/day
• 5-star rated, 156+ reviews. Buy-by-the-day with auto refunds. ActivityHero Best Business Award 6 years running. Tiered approach keeps kids challenged.
• Also operates in SF and Peninsula — check futurebytes.tech for current schedule.

Camp Captivate

• Ages: 6–12
• Location: Santa Clara · Cupertino
• Cost: $500–$800/week
• Creative STEAM themes. Better suited for variety and fun than deep technical rigour.

SHC Summer Institute

• Ages: 8–14
• Location: Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory, San Francisco
• Cost: $525/week
• One-week enrichment courses and sports academies run by private school staff. Balances fun with structure.

Also in South Bay: Applied Computing Foundation · TechKnowHow · CodeWizardsHQ

FutureBytes also runs year-round classes — see our coding and robotics programmes. Looking for overnight options? See best overnight summer camps Bay Area.

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Peninsula STEM camps

Hiller Aviation Museum

• Ages: 5–13
• Location: San Carlos
• Cost: $550–$725/week
• Drone and flight sim tracks highly praised. Starlab (younger kids) can feel repetitive after year two — best as a one-off specialised experience.

Destination Science

• Ages: 6–14
• Location: Burlingame · Palo Alto
• Cost: ~$600/week
• Kids bring home hands-on projects. Recent feedback notes high student-to-teacher ratios and reliance on teen helpers.

Play-Well TEKnologies

• Ages: K–5
• Location: Peninsula · South Bay · East Bay community sites
• Cost: $250–$500/week
• Focus on physics and engineering without being academic. Most affordable multi-region option.

Also in Peninsula: Camp Galileo · iD Tech · FutureBytes

Planning a longer break? See top family sleepaway camps near Yosemite or find summer camp deals and discounts.

East Bay STEM camps

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Lawrence Hall of Science

• Ages: 4–14
• Location: UC Berkeley
• Cost: $625–$950/week
• Best for hard science — lab-based, planetarium access, research-style activities. If your child wants recess and games, this is not the camp. Limited parking at drop-off.

UC Berkeley ATDP

• Ages: K–High school
• Location: Point Richmond (K–6) · UC Berkeley main campus (grades 7–11)
• Cost: $750–$1,320
• Requires transcripts and teacher recommendations. Significantly more affordable than private pre-college programmes. Students return year after year.

Tinker Coop

• Ages: 8–14
• Location: Berkeley · Oakland
• Cost: $600–$850/week
• East Bay's answer to Tinkering School. High instructor-to-child ratio. Parents love the organised chaos that leads to wooden and electronic inventions.

Chabot Space & Science Center

• Ages: 6–14
• Location: Oakland
• Cost: $500–$700/week
• Astronomy and physics focus. Telescope observation and immersive programmes. Fun-first — not academically rigorous.

Firecracker Math

• Ages: 6–16
• Location: Oakland · Berkeley · Lafayette
• Cost: $500–$650/week
• Parents of kids who love puzzles say it is magic. Parents of kids who struggle with math say it feels too much like extra school.

Mad Science

• Ages: 5–12
• Location: Fremont
• Cost: $400–$600/week
• Best for early elementary. Focused on engagement rather than depth.

Looking for overnight camps near the East Bay? See best overnight summer camps Bay Area.

Tri-Valley STEM camps

Quest Science Center

• Ages: High school (9th–12th grade)
• Location: Los Positas College, Livermore
• Cost: ~$800/week
• Inquiry-based; "failing and iterating" focus. Best local Tri-Valley option for families avoiding the commute to South Bay or Berkeley.

Also serving Tri-Valley: Engineering For Kids · Camp Galileo · TechKnowHow — Camp Galileo is a popular choice here.

Camp Galileo

• The Vibe: A massive favorite in the region for high-energy camp spirit and open-ended maker projects.
• It can easily feel like a creative crafting camp rather than hard science, especially for younger kids. Because it is heavily staffed by enthusiastic college students, it lacks deep technical instruction for advanced STEM students looking for a challenge.

TechKnowHow

• The Vibe: The premier local alternative for pure mechanical engineering and structural design.
• The curriculum is entirely LEGO-based. While fantastic for spatial design and spatial engineering, a child who isn't a dedicated LEGO builder will likely hit a ceiling or lose interest quickly.

Engineering For Kids

• The Vibe: A great broad-spectrum option covering everything from aerospace to chemical engineering.
• As a national corporate franchise, the pacing can feel rigid and classroom-like, relying on step-by-step worksheets. It lacks the dynamic, free-play "camp magic" and high-energy social atmosphere found at Galileo.

Planning a family overnight trip? See top family sleepaway camps near Yosemite or find summer camp deals and discounts.

High school and pre-college STEM programmes

Veritas AI

• Ages: High school
• Location: Online / Palo Alto
• Cost: $2,290–$7,900
• PhD mentors from Stanford and MIT. Parents of students with zero prior experience report strong portfolio outcomes. Most personalised high school AI option in the Bay Area.

Stanford AI4All

• Ages: Rising 10th grade
• Location: Stanford University
• Cost: $4,000 (online) – $9,800 (residential, some financial aid available)
• Best for research exposure over coding skills. Parents view it as a prestige programme.

UC Berkeley ATDP

• Ages: Grades 7–11
• Location: UC Berkeley main campus
• Cost: $750–$1,320
• Equivalent rigour to private pre-college programmes at a fraction of the cost. Requires teacher recommendations and transcripts.

Berkeley Coding Academy

• Ages: High school
• Location: UC Berkeley
• Cost: $1,500–$3,200
• College-level Python and data science intensity. Best for academically confident students.

Inspirit AI

• Ages: High school
• Location: Stanford / SF / Online
• Cost: $1,200–$3,800
• Strong Ivy-league branding. Some parents prefer Veritas AI for more personalised research depth.

Stanford Pre-Collegiate

• Ages: High school
• Location: Stanford University
• Cost: $3,000–$8,000+
• Closest format to a real university course. Highly rigorous and selective.

Digital Media Academy

• Ages: 12–18
• Location: Stanford University
• Cost: $1,800+/week
• Good for exploring multiple tech tracks. Lacks the mentorship depth of Veritas AI or the research prestige of Stanford AI4All.

For year-round high school coding classes see coding and robotics programmes.

What Bay Area Parents Ask About STEM Summer Camps

Q: Which Bay Area AI and coding camps are best for high school students?

• Veritas AI — PhD mentors from Stanford and MIT, real portfolio output; parents of complete beginners report solid results
• Stanford AI4All — research exposure over coding skills; financial aid available for the residential track
• UC Berkeley ATDP — matches private pre-college rigor at a fraction of the cost; requires teacher recommendations and transcripts

Browse all high school options on our Bay Area programs page.

Q: How are expensive STEM coding and robotics camps different from lower-cost options?

Price does not reliably predict quality:

• Applied Computing Foundation ($300–$500/week) outperforms many pricier camps for technical kids and feeds directly into FIRST LEGO League competition
• TechKnowHow wins Bay Area Parent poll awards year after year at mid-range pricing
• The clearest quality signal at any price point: does the camp produce a finished project, working robot, or deployable program by end of week?

Q: What coding camp is fun for children and builds logical thinking?

• Tinkering School (SF Presidio) — real drills and saws, full-scale projects, genuine problem-solving confidence; fills via lottery so register early
• Applied Computing Foundation — channels competitive energy into robotics builds that qualify for FIRST LEGO League
• Play-Well TEKnologies — large-scale LEGO engineering for younger kids, no academic pressure

All three build logical thinking through making, not screens. For year-round options that keep the momentum going, see our after-school and weekend STEM programs.

Q: How much screen time do these kind of summer camps involve?

Hardware-focused camps built around LEGO Spike, VEX IQ, Arduino, or Raspberry Pi are mostly physical building and sensor work — kids are on their feet, not at a desk. Game design and Scratch-based coding camps sit at the other end of the spectrum.

If screen time matters to you, and it should - our guide on choosing coding and robotics programs with the least screen time gives you a practical framework for evaluating any program, camp or otherwise.