Michael Brown

The other day, while I was listening to the “Android Developers Backstage” Podcast, my Pixel vibrated and asked me to “Bring Pixel closer to Tablet”. Of course, I followed my pocket Android’s instructions and Voilà! “Tap to Cast” automagically casted the podcast to my Pixel Tablet. You can see below:

View on Threads

You might’ve see this already posted on Threads and BlueSky (which took forever to upload btw), but I thought it was so cool! I heard about the feature when it was announced, but I never knew when it would reach my devices. It was a nice surprise. Especially when it was a happenstance instead of, like I used to, spam the update button to get the latest features. I need to take on that practice more. See the feature announced and go about my day, not angrily spam the “update” button and shake my fist at the clouds like a mad man, trying to force the feature to my devices.

I digress. Abner at 9to5Google explained it best back in January, 2024:

When listening with YouTube Music or Spotify, bringing your Pixel 6 Pro, 7 Pro, 8 Pro, or Fold – which all have UWB (Ultra-Wideband) – near a docked Pixel Tablet will seamlessly move what’s playing between devices. This is bidirectional with the ability to transfer a song from the Pixel Tablet to your Pixel phone also available.

Officially, Google is using a “range of technologies to determine the proximity and presence of devices as part of multi-device experiences, which includes UWB.” Its Cross device SDK was announced in 2022 and consists of three layers:

• “The first layer recognizes what devices are physically close by, with wireless technologies like Bluetooth Low Energy, Wi-Fi, and ultra-wideband (UWB).”

• “The second layer is nearby device discovery and context-aware capabilities that identify which device you may want to use based on your current activity.”

• “Finally, the third layer understands and adjusts actions based on how you interact with your devices with cross-device intelligence.”

Google went as far to explain that “Tap to Cast” is available without any additional work if developers integrate Output Switcher (2.0) on Android 14. Right now, it’s only available with YouTube Music and Spotify with UWB enabled Pixel devices like my Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel Tablet. It’s nice to know that this isn’t an exclusive Pixel feature so more hardware and apps could be supported in the future!

Google offering ‘voluntary exit’ for employees working on Pixel, Android

This sounds like Google is letting the extra bulk roll off voluntarily? To me this sounds like the equivalent to when Steve Jobs asked Jony Ive his “why” to him being on the Mac team. Google provided a full statement to 9to5Google below:

The Platforms & Devices team is offering a voluntary exit program that provides US-based Googlers working on this team the ability to voluntarily leave the company with a severance package. This comes after we brought two large organizations together last year. There’s tremendous momentum on this team and with so much important work ahead, we want everyone to be deeply committed to our mission and focused on building great products, with speed and efficiency.

I’m assuming this was a conversation that happened when the Platform & Devices team restructured to a more functional organization model a year ago. Something Apple and other hardware makers do to bring more focus on their products. Now that Google is truly in it’s Gemini era, Pixel, Nest, and Fitbit truly need to be the vehicles for Google’s vision. Especially with Android XR getting a lot of positive reception from the public. I’m hoping Google lives up to the hype in 2025 as I know quite a few individuals on that team that have done some amazing work already.

This post is inspired by Parker Ortolani’s thought-provoking question, “Where are the BlueSky Clients?". Like Ortolani, I’m puzzled by the apparent focus on Mastodon clients over BlueSky clients by developers.

“…what I can’t wrap my head around is the business decision of developers to lean into Mastodon clients versus Bluesky ones.”

Ortolani’s observation about developers leaning towards ActivityPub despite BlueSky’s larger user base (30 million vs. Mastodon’s 9 million) raises a valid point. While the extensive tooling available for ActivityPub development might be a factor, I suspect there’s more to the story. Perhaps I’m wrong, but I believe a stronger connection between the Android, ActivityPub, and AT Protocol communities is crucial, given their shared focus on decentralized infrastructure.

My own perspective on the Fediverse and social media ownership has shifted recently. I’m striving to recapture the joy of social platforms as spaces for community and collaboration, rather than succumbing to the pressures of capitalism and centralized control. This very shift prompted me to migrate my blog from Substack to Micro.blog. I appreciate that Micro.blog offers an Android app, and while it’s currently basic, I hope to see more active development on the Android front. A friend of mine has a blog that breaks down the different Activity Pub blogging platforms that I think is incredibly useful, but it’s solely available as a web app.

This brings me to a key point. I’ve even considered exploring Android app development myself, alongside my full-stack web development work. I understand the time and effort required to build clients, and I’m genuinely grateful for platforms like Micro.blog that offer apps in the Play Store (or even sideloadable on Android). However, I believe a stronger synergy with Android, the world’s most popular mobile operating system, is essential for the growth of decentralized social media.

For a decentralized network, prioritizing web development followed by Android development seems logical. Focusing primarily on the web and then closed ecosystems like iPadOS and iOS feels counterintuitive. Perhaps I’m missing a critical piece of the puzzle, but it strikes me as a backwards approach.

Why aren’t we seeing more development for the most accessible and widespread mobile platform?