diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index eaaa824a..eb77a081 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,5 +1,12 @@
 # sqlite3-ruby Changelog
 
+## 2.5.0.rc1 / 2024-12-14
+
+### Ruby
+
+This release introduces native gem packages that include Ruby 3.4.
+
+
 ## 2.4.1 / 2024-12-08
 
 ### Dependencies
diff --git a/lib/sqlite3/version.rb b/lib/sqlite3/version.rb
index a9f275cd..25f3b1bd 100644
--- a/lib/sqlite3/version.rb
+++ b/lib/sqlite3/version.rb
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
 module SQLite3
   # (String) the version of the sqlite3 gem, e.g. "2.1.1"
-  VERSION = "2.4.1"
+  VERSION = "2.5.0.rc1"
 end