\n<\/p>\n
Ten years ago, Android got a lot bigger. Not just because it crossed over a billion active users, but because in 2014, we extended Android (then primarily available on phones and tablets) to three new platforms: Android Auto for your car, Android TV for your smart TV and Android Wear for your smartwatch. The new platforms introduced Android to hundreds of millions of new devices and brought Google services to more places.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur mission since the launch of the first Android device in 2008 has been to work with the industry and build for everyone, everywhere \u2014 to provide people with choice,\u201d says Android Ecosystem President Sameer Samat. \u201cAnd in 2014, we decided to take that to the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cars, smartwatches and TVs may sound like three extremely different categories of devices, with such vastly different hardware and form factors that it\u2019s hard to imagine they\u2019d share any software DNA, let alone the same base operating system. But Android\u2019s open platform, developer-friendly design and flexibility made it a great fit for new places.<\/p>\n
In 2010, Google Maps added turn-by-turn navigation, and practically overnight, driving became wildly more efficient.<\/p>\n
\u201cSmartphones were not designed to be used in a vehicle by a driver. So we looked at this as an opportunity to create a safer and more seamless connected experience,\u201d says Patrick Brady, Android Auto VP. \u201cWe realized we could leverage the computers in everyone\u2019s pockets that had an ecosystem of millions of apps used by over a billion people. So we adapted Android \u2014 and its apps \u2014 to work in cars.\u201d<\/p>\n
Android Auto\u2019s approach was simple: Connect your phone to your car display and you\u2019ll see your Android apps on screen, ready to give you directions, make a hands-free call or play music from your favorite playlists.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n