Android is an operating system developed by Google, designed primarily for smartphones and tablets (touchscreen-based mobile devices originally, later for other devices, such as TVs and PCs), based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other free and open-source software. First released in 2008, Android is the world's most widely used operating system with 3.9 billion users, and the most used operating system for smartphones. The latest version, released on June 16, 2026, is Android 17.
At its core, the operating system is known as the Android Open Source Project (AOSP), was originally only made for a smartphone, and is free and open-source software (FOSS) primarily licensed under the Apache License. However, most devices run the proprietary Android open-core version developed by Google, which ships with additional proprietary closed-source software pre-installed, most notably Google Mobile Services (GMS), which includes core apps such as Google Chrome, the digital distribution platform Google Play, and the associated Google Play Services development platform. Other Google services including Firebase Cloud Messaging, used for push notifications, are recommended for applications. While AOSP is free, the "Android" name and logo are trademarks of Google, who restrict the use of Android branding on "uncertified" products. The majority of smartphones and other devices based on AOSP run Google's ecosystem—which is known simply as Android—some with vendor-customized user interfaces and software suites, for example One UI. Numerous modified distributions exist, which include competing Amazon Fire OS, community-developed LineageOS; the source code has also been used to develop a variety of Android distributions on a range of other devices, such as Android TV for televisions, Wear OS for wearables, Android Automotive for in-car systems, Android XR for virtual reality headsets, and Android for PCs. Commercial products like micro consoles have also used Android.
Software packages on Android, which use the APK format, are generally distributed through a proprietary application store; non-Google platforms include vendor-specific Amazon Appstore, Samsung Galaxy Store, Huawei AppGallery, and third-party companies Aptoide, Cafe Bazaar, GetJar or open source F-Droid. Since 2011 Android has been the most used operating system worldwide on smartphones. It has the largest installed base of any operating system in the world with over three billion monthly active users and accounting for 45% of the global operating system market.
View More On Wikipedia.org