{"id":74827,"date":"2025-08-16T20:14:19","date_gmt":"2025-08-16T20:14:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/74827\/"},"modified":"2025-08-16T20:14:19","modified_gmt":"2025-08-16T20:14:19","slug":"googles-next-big-android-release-is-coming-with-these-ai-tools-and-uwb-features","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/74827\/","title":{"rendered":"Google’s next big Android release is coming with these AI tools and UWB features"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last year, Google announced it was accelerating Android\u2019s release schedule<\/a>. In the past, Google typically rolled out a single Android release each year with new APIs for developers. Starting in 2025, however, the company is moving to two such releases annually: one major and one minor. We\u2019ve already received this year\u2019s major release with the stable Android 16<\/a> update in June, and the upcoming Android 16 QPR2 update will be the first minor one. Here are some of the new features we think Google will release in Android 16 QPR2.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re reading the Authority Insights Newsletter, a weekly newsletter that reveals some new facet of Android that hasn\u2019t been reported on anywhere else. If you\u2019re looking for the latest scoops, the hottest leaks, and breaking news on Google\u2019s Android operating system and other mobile tech topics, then we\u2019ve got you covered.<\/p>\n

Subscribe here<\/a> to get this post delivered to your email inbox every Saturday.<\/p>\n

Android 16 QPR2 will let AI agents control other apps<\/p>\n

In my Android 16 review<\/a>, I highlighted a new API called App Functions<\/a>. This API allows developers to expose their app\u2019s key features to the device\u2019s default assistant, which can then execute those functions on the user\u2019s behalf. For example, a restaurant app could expose an \u2018order food\u2019 function, allowing users to place an order with a voice command without even opening the app.<\/p>\n

I posited that the App Functions API could turn Google Gemini<\/a> into a true AI agent by enabling it to perform far more actions in third-party apps than it currently can. However, Google has been quiet about this functionality, even though the API is available in Android 16.<\/p>\n

This may be because there\u2019s currently no way to restrict an assistant\u2019s ability to use the API without disabling the assistant entirely, which some users might find problematic. Android 16 QPR2 may solve this problem by introducing a page that lets you manage which assistant apps can perform actions on your behalf.<\/p>\n

While digging through the latest Android Canary<\/a> release, I spotted a new string in the Settings app for a page titled \u201cagent control of other apps.\u201d This page is destined for Android\u2019s privacy dashboard, but it\u2019s currently hidden. Another unused string I found says the page will let you control which assistants can \u201cperform actions on your device and in other apps.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Agent<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

The page itself doesn\u2019t open yet, as Android attempts to load an empty activity in the system\u2019s Permission Controller app. This activity is only enabled if the device is running SDK version \u201836.1,\u2019 which corresponds to Android 16 QPR2, confirming the feature is intended for this release.<\/p>\n

\"AppFunctions<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Android 16 QPR2 brings better parental controls for separated or mixed families<\/p>\n

The internet is full of content that\u2019s addicting or inappropriate for minors, which is why Android offers parental controls<\/a>. Through Google Family Link<\/a>, parents can remotely manage the apps and settings on their children\u2019s devices. However, this system has a limitation: for multiple parents to manage the same child\u2019s device, they must all be in the same Google family group. This can pose a problem for separated or mixed families, as it forces parents to comingle their various Google apps and family payment methods. Google may solve this issue with the new \u201clocal supervision\u201d feature in Android 16 QPR2.<\/p>\n

In the first Android Canary release, Google added a dedicated \u201cParental controls\u201d page to the main screen of the Settings app. For context, these controls are currently located within the Digital Wellbeing settings<\/a> in the stable version of Android 16. When we first attempted to open this new page, we hit an endless loading screen, leading us to believe the feature wasn\u2019t implemented yet.<\/p>\n

However, it turns out the feature is functional, just not its setup page. The dedicated \u201cParental Controls\u201d page becomes accessible if you first manually enable parental controls, either during the initial device setup or via the link at the bottom of the Digital Wellbeing settings.<\/p>\n

\"Local<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

On the new \u201cParental controls\u201d page, parents will find a familiar set of options. They can set a daily screen time limit, schedule downtime that locks apps but still allows calls, and apply time limits to specific apps. They can also toggle content filters in compatible web browsers and search engines.<\/p>\n

\"Daily<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

\"App<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

While these settings are not new for parents who have used Google Family Link, the method of control is. The key change is the ability to manage these settings using a PIN set directly on the supervised device. When setting up parental controls in Android 16 QPR2, you\u2019ll be asked to create this PIN and provide a recovery email. This email can be used if you forget the PIN or want to prevent a factory reset<\/a> from removing the controls.<\/p>\n

Setting a PIN creates a new \u201csupervising\u201d profile under the hood, which locks certain actions. This PIN is then required on the device to change settings like daily or app-specific limits, or to disable parental controls entirely.<\/p>\n

\"Website<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Previously, changing these settings on the supervised device required entering a parent\u2019s Google account password. This system was not only inconvenient but also limiting. Because Google family groups can only have two parents, other trusted adults like a babysitter or grandparent couldn\u2019t help manage a child\u2019s device without being given a highly sensitive password.<\/p>\n

A PIN, on the other hand, is much easier and safer to share. Any trusted adult who has it can adjust the daily limit, app restrictions, downtime schedule, or content filters. The PIN can also be changed at any time if needed.<\/p>\n

While this new parental controls tool is more flexible, it won\u2019t replace Google Family Link. Family Link offers additional remote settings and monitoring features, so it\u2019ll remain a useful option for many parents.<\/p>\n

We know this feature is coming in Android 16 QPR2 thanks to a code change<\/a> we spotted in the Chromium Gerrit. This change adds a \u2018separate gating mechanism for on-device filters in Android 16.1+,\u2019 which we can confirm refers to Android 16 QPR2 for two reasons.<\/p>\n

First, Google already confirmed that Android 16 QPR2 will include an SDK version bump to 36.1 from 36.0. Second, the code checks if a device\u2019s build version starts with \u2018BP41.\u2019 Since Android 16 QPR1 builds start with \u2018BP31,\u2019 it\u2019s a safe assumption that \u2018BP41\u2032 will be used for Android 16 QPR2. The code also checks for major and minor OS versions of \u201916\u2019 and \u20181,\u2019 respectively. If these conditions are met, the device is flagged as supporting \u2018local supervision\u2019 features, which allow \u2018non-signed in users\u2019 to enable web content filters in Chrome.<\/p>\n

\"Build<\/p>\n

Mishaal Rahman \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Although Wear OS<\/a> is based on Android, not every feature makes it to the smartwatch platform. This one also has utility on smartwatches, however, which is why Google is working to implement it. We don\u2019t yet know if Google will include it in a mid-cycle Wear OS 6.1 release or wait until Wear OS 7, though.<\/p>\n

Enhanced UWB support in Android 16 QPR2<\/p>\n

Lastly, we\u2019re expecting Android 16 QPR2 to introduce support for a new version of ultra-wideband (UWB)<\/a>. A code change<\/a> Google submitted in February added flags for \u201cgrapi and uwb updates for 25Q4.\u201d Here, \u201cgrapi\u201d refers to the Generic Ranging API introduced in Android 16, while \u201c25Q4\u201d refers to the fourth quarterly release of 2025 \u2014 i.e., Android 16 QPR2.<\/p>\n

Google is preparing to upgrade Android\u2019s UWB stack with features from the FiRa 3.0 core specification<\/a>. This new spec adds features like hybrid UWB scheduling, which allows multiple UWB applications and features to run concurrently. It also improves data transfer by allocating exclusive airtime to it, boosts the quality and integrity of UWB pulses, and enhances the security of the protocol\u2019s physical layer. These enhancements will enable more sophisticated UWB use cases, like public transport fare collection, contactless payments, and logical access control.<\/p>\n

Those are all the features we know are coming in Android 16 QPR2, or at least are planned for that release. We expect some of the changes we\u2019ve spotted in the Android Canary releases<\/a> to make their way into QPR2, but we won\u2019t know for sure until Google releases the betas. Speaking of which\u2026<\/p>\n

When is the Android 16 QPR2 release date?<\/p>\n

The stable version of Android 16 QPR2 should arrive sometime in December 2025, with Google currently targeting a December 2 release. However, the company has changed its release plans in the past, so don\u2019t be surprised if the date shifts. The only thing we can be reasonably sure of is an early December launch, as this will be the fourth and final quarterly Android release of 2025.<\/p>\n

\"Android<\/p>\n

Android’s 2025 release timeline overview<\/p>\n

Authority Insights is more than a newsletter \u2014 it\u2019s the hub for all our best content. If you care about Android, you won\u2019t want to miss any of our other exclusive reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t have time to read them all? Subscribe to our Authority Insights Podcast<\/a> to hear me and my co-host, C. Scott Brown, break down our top stories of the week.<\/p>\n

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Thank you for being part of our community. Read our\u00a0Comment Policy<\/a> before posting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Last year, Google announced it was accelerating Android\u2019s release schedule. In the past, Google typically rolled out a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":74828,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1931,5497,46087,49,48,61],"class_list":["post-74827","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-android-16","tag-authority-insights","tag-authority-insights-newsletter","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}