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Google I/O is just days away, and that means it’s time for another Android Show event to unpack all the Android ecosystem highlights Google has in store.
The highlight of this year’s Android Show was Googlebooks, a new line of laptops running Android. They can cast apps from Android phones, pull files directly from a connected Android device, and offer contextual AI suggestions using the mouse pointer. Google says the first of these Chromebook successors are “coming this fall.”
Google also showed off some new features coming in Android 17, including 3D emoji, custom AI-generated widgets, expanded access to Quick Share/AirDrop, the “Rambler” AI transcription tool, and a new “Pause Point” feature for helping manage screen time. Plus, Android Auto got “the biggest update in its 10-year history,” with improved support for different screen sizes (and shapes), support for Material 3 Expressive and widgets, the ability to stream content from YouTube to your car’s screen, and more.
Google-powered cars will predictively nudge you to switch lanes.
Amidst the biggest update to Android Auto in 10 years, here’s one more feature we spotted on the Android Show: it uses your car’s front camera to predict when to move over. (What would it look for?) Only for select Google Built-in cars, not vanilla Android Auto.
Gemini’s latest updates are all about controlling your phone
It is, once again, Gemini season. Google is announcing a host of new Gemini features during its pre-I/O Android showcase, many of which aim to help use your phone for you. You’ll find Gemini in more places, like Chrome on Android, in your autofill suggestions, and all up in your apps — if you want.
Google also has a new name for us to remember, because it just can’t help itself: Gemini Intelligence. It “brings the very best of Gemini to our most advanced Android devices,” according to Google’s director of Android experiences, Ben Greenwood. Google is bundling some existing and new Gemini features under this name, and seems to be reserving them for premium Android phones like the Galaxy S26 series. Write that one down on your I/O bingo card.
Android is getting better for creators.
Adobe’s updated Premiere video editing app, which launched on iOS last September, will finally arrive on Android “this summer.” It’ll include some Android-exclusive templates and effects designed for YouTube Shorts.
There are also Android-exclusive tools coming to Instagram’s Edits app, including AI upscaling and automatic audio track separation.
The 9 biggest new features in Android 17
Would it shock you to hear that Android 17 is filled with new AI-enabled features, like improved dictation and vibe-coded widgets? Fortunately, that’s not all. The platform is getting non-AI updates too, from an emoji overhaul to a new screentime tool that helps you avoid distracting apps.
Google has just revealed the biggest changes coming in its next OS update as part of its dedicated Android Show, ahead of next week’s big I/O developer conference. The Android software updates came alongside a tease of upcoming Android-powered Googlebook laptops and a host of Android Auto updates. Here are all the new updates that matter and when you can expect them to arrive on your phone.
Google announces its Chromebook successor: the Googlebook
Image: Google
Google is announcing a new line of laptops coming in the fall called Googlebooks. Details are sparse for now, as the tease is just a small part of various Android announcements during Google’s Android Show. But we do know this is a major new initiative in the laptop space for Google, seemingly designed to succeed Chromebooks with something more capable: a platform running a long-rumored new operating system based on a fusion of Android and ChromeOS.
That operating system, through various leaks, has been referred to as Aluminium OS. Google isn’t announcing the OS’s real name or giving many details about it just yet. “We’ll have more to share on the exact OS branding later this year,” Peter Du of Google’s global communications team tells The Verge. “We can confirm it is not Aluminium — that is the codename, not the official branding.”
Android Auto is now one (screen) size fits all
Image: Google
This week at I/O, Google rolled out a series of major updates for Android Auto that include better sizing for unconventionally shaped screens, video streaming through YouTube, widget support, and of course, more AI-powered Gemini features. The company also announced some updates for cars that run on Google’s built-in native software, including the ability to ask Gemini questions that are specific to the car you’re driving.
First off, it’s screen size. It used to be that in-car screens all came in the same basic shape. But now the standard rectangle has evolved into a variety of curved, panoramic, swooping, and even circular displays. Google is rising to the moment, announcing a new update that more accurately tailors Android Auto to any size screen.
Google’s Aluminium OS revealed in 16-minute leaked video
Aluminium OS, Google’s upcoming version of Android for PC, may have just leaked a few hours before Google’s Android Show presentation. As Android Authority reports, leaker Mystic Leaks shared a 16-minute video on their Telegram channel that appears to show a lengthy hands-on demo of the new operating system.
After a loading screen featuring the Android logo, the video shows the setup process for a new device. That process and the UI overall both look very similar to stock Android throughout, only resized to suit a laptop rather than a phone. The taskbar and app drawer are similar to what ChromeOS users will be familiar with, but the default homescreen now includes desktop icons and a Google search bar. The settings app even displays the device’s OS as “Android version 17.”
How to watch Google’s Android Show: I/O Edition today
Google I/O is still a week away, but Google’s big announcements kick off today with the “Android Show: I/O Edition,” where it’s expected to announce the major Android ecosystem highlights coming to its annual developer conference.
Android Show: I/O Edition will be streaming live on YouTube and the Android website on Tuesday, May 12th at 10AM PT / 1PM ET. Based on last year’s Android Show, we can expect the highlights to include a look at the next major Android update along with announcements about Gemini features on Android and potentially teases of some more forward-facing projects, like Aluminium OS and Android XR.
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