Google is shaking things up with a significant reorganization of its key divisions.
The tech giant is combining its Android, Chrome, and Google hardware divisions into a brand-new “Platforms and Devices” division, which Rick Osterloh, the current Senior Vice President of Google Hardware, will lead. Hiroshi Lockheimer, who previously led software platforms such as Android and ChromeOS, will now focus on new projects within the company.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai expressed enthusiasm about the merger in a blog post titled “Building for our AI future.” He believes that a unified team will enhance product quality and user experiences, accelerate the evolution of the Android and Chrome ecosystems, and deliver innovations to partners more swiftly—much like their recent collaboration with Samsung on the Circle to Search feature. We also expect the consolidation to streamline internal decision-making processes.
This reorganization aligns with Google’s increasing focus on AI, as mentioned in Pichai’s post. The new division will incorporate a segment of Google Research, particularly the team that has been advancing computational photography, to foster integration at the intersection of hardware, software, and AI.
Rick Osterloh shared his excitement on Twitter about leading the new division, highlighting his anticipation of driving AI innovation within the Android ecosystem. He also expressed eagerness to enhance Google’s strategic partnership with Qualcomm and expand collaboration beyond mobile to areas like compute, XR, and automotive. Osterloh’s criticism of Google for using Qualcomm’s chips before developing its own Pixel Tensor chip with Samsung underscores the significance of this focus on Qualcomm.
The reorganization also includes some strategic positioning within the company. Sameer Samat will be stepping up as the new president of the Android ecosystem, having previously served as VP under Lockheimer. Samat’s history in this role means he already has established relationships throughout the Android ecosystem.
Despite the significant changes, Osterloh reassured in an interview with The Verge that the legendary “firewall” between Google’s Android and hardware teams and its ecosystem partners will remain in place. He emphasized the ongoing separation of teams to maintain fair partnerships and prevent any favoritism towards Google’s in-house hardware efforts.
This reorganization marks a pivotal shift for Google, aiming to better integrate its technologies and focus on AI-driven innovation. Google has already briefed the broader Android ecosystem about this strategic update, so it will be interesting to see how these changes influence it.
