2026 could be a blockbuster year for Google after some serious success across almost all areas in 2025. What should and could we expect?
2026 could be a blockbuster year for Google after some serious success across almost all areas in 2025. What should and could we expect? Here are a few early-year thoughts and expectations.
Whether Google succeeds in some areas is up for debate, but there is no doubt that the company is on a roll with so many existing and portfolio products. From top to bottom, there is so much optimism, and while AI is still one of the buzzwords, it has helped drastically as Gemini is one of, if not the premier, AI platforms period.
From smartphones to smart speakers, there are a few bankers, plus some less quantifiable additions. Here’s what we (think) we’ll be working with throughout 2026:Android 17 (obvious)
The dust has barely settled on Android 16, but like that staggered release, some funky things might happen with how Google will bring Android 17 to our phones in 2026. We had a two-part release last year, and that could happen again, but the company confirmed after the December Pixel Drop that this was a milestone for how Android updates will work. Big yearly releases could be a thing of the past; instead, we’ll get “the latest features as soon as they’re ready,” according to their own press release.
Now, that doesn’t mean we won’t get Android 17. In fact, it means the exact opposite. We can expect further evolution of the OS throughout the year with quarterly releases. Having said that, this has been the case for a while already.
The new timeline has been aligned to better sync with the yearly release of Pixel hardware, which was mid-Q3 2025. Android Canary has been added to the lineup to speed up iterations, too. There’s a lot to contend with when we’re discussing Android – the platform. Just expect Android 17, it’ll come, even if it’s just an API change followed by more visual overhauls like with Android 16 and QPR1.
Just how much it differs from Android 16 is anyone’s guess. It could simply add in more under-the-hood behaviors. Gemini could also play a more pivotal role.New Pixels (obvious)
Building on the foundations of the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 series is imperative for Google in 2026, and it’s a near-certainty that we’ll see new hardware, starting with the Pixel 10a. It’s not clear when that might be, as 9a hit store shelves earlier than any of its predecessors. If the March-April launch-to-release timeframe is adhered to, that means we won’t have much longer to wait to get the affordable Pixel 10 handset.
