If you’ve ever used a third-party launcher to replace the home screen on your Android device, you’ve probably at least tried Nova Launcher. Despite tens of millions of downloads, Nova Launcher development is shutting down.

Nova Launcher has been around since 2011, dating back to Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich days. The app was founded by Kevin Barry and has been developed by him ever since. As of 2022, though, Nova Launcher had been acquired by Branch, a metrics company. In 2024, things were looking rough as nearly the entire staff was laid off, leaving only Nova’s original founder to run the show alone.

At this point, though, it looks like things are done.

In a new blog post, Kevin Barry explains that he has been “asked to stop working on Nova Launcher.” This leaves the launcher, which is still available on the Play Store, in limbo and without a clear future. Barry says that along with this end to active development, plans to open source Nova have also ended.

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The post, titled “So Long,” reads in part:

I’m the founder and original developer of Nova Launcher. I’ve been the only one working on Nova for the past year. I needed to let you know that I have left Branch and am no longer involved with Nova Launcher.

For the past several months I have been preparing the Open Source release of Nova Launcher. This work included cleaning up the codebase, reviewing licenses, removing or replacing proprietary code, and coordinating with legal to ensure a proper release. When Branch acquired Nova in 2022, Branch then-CEO and founder Alex Austin made several public commitments to the community about Nova’s future…

However I was ultimately asked to stop working on Nova Launcher and the open sourcing effort.

Nova Launcher has been an incredible project and has an incredible community. I’m grateful for the years of support, feedback, and enthusiasm.

Technically, there’s nothing saying Branch won’t hand Nova off to someone else, but at the very least the Nova we’ve come to know is done.

Are you still using Nova, or any other third-party launchers?

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