Over the past decade, Google has maintained a release schedule for new versions of the Android operating system, introducing new versions of the OS in the fall, following a series of betas and previews of the new operating system. However, in 2025 everything will change. Google said it will release the next major Android update in the second quarter of next year instead of the third, confirming earlier rumors of Android 16, codenamed “Baklava.”
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In its latest announcement, Google said the OS release schedule “will be better aligned with the release schedule of new mobile devices across the entire Android ecosystem. This way, more devices will be able to get the new OS version sooner.”
The company also said that with the release of the new operating system, the Play Store application store will be improved. Its users will be able to share preferences to receive the best recommendations for new applications. This feature has already been implemented for games. The company also said that more Gemini AI features will be added to the Android Studio app development environment for “writing, refactoring and documenting” app code.
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The issue of the inconvenient release schedule for new versions of the Android OS was raised by various media several years ago. While Google’s signature Pixel smartphones are the first to receive all the latest updates, other smartphone makers have to wait several months to receive the Android code to adapt it to their current and new products. The new OS update release schedule will allow more smartphone manufacturers to release new devices with the latest software features much earlier.
According to the new schedule, Google will release the main major update to Android in the second quarter of next year, with the release of additional features and tools taking place in the fourth quarter of 2025. This way, smartphone manufacturers will be able to start testing new features of the latest version of the OS much earlier, in order to subsequently integrate them into their new products.