Get more done across devices with Android

Adding technology to your life should make every day a little easier. But that only happens if the devices are able to anticipate your needs and move smoothly from one activity to the next throughout the day. We’ve been hard at work building on our efforts to bring you even more simple and helpful ways for your devices to all work better together.

Instant setup for even more devices

We launched Fast Pair to remove the frustration out of pairing your Android phone with new Bluetooth accessories like headphones and speakers, and have already helped connect these devices over 175 million times. Earlier this year, we shared plans to expand Fast Pair support to more devices, so you can automatically detect and pair compatible headphones with your Android phone, Chromebook and Google TV with a single click.

Starting this fall, we’ll introduce built-in support for Matter on Android, so you can use Fast Pair to quickly connect Matter-enabled smart home devices to your network, Google Home and other accompanying apps in just a few taps. Whether you’re updating your current setup or building a new smart home network, consider light bulbs, thermostats and plugs from supported Matter brands like Eve, Yale and Philips Hue.

A phone showing the process of connecting a smart plug into the Google Home app with Fast Pair for Matter-enabled devices

Media throughout your day

Chromecast built-in is designed to help you easily share audio, photo and video content from your phone to supported smart speakers, displays and TVs. And the Google TV app will soon have the ability for you to cast shows and movies directly from your Android phone or tablet to your TV. In the future, we’re also working to bring casting to Chromebooks and cars with Google built-in so you can enjoy media on whatever screen is in front of you. This means you’ll be able to start watching your favorite team's game on your laptop at work, switch to your phone while you walk to the parking lot, and catch the final minutes on your car's display (while parked or charging) before driving home.

A tablet casting a movie from the Google TV mobile app directly to a TV.

At CES this year, we showcased how our technology can improve your experience on headphones and painlessly switch the audio between the devices you’re listening on whether it’s your Android phone or tablet. In the next few months, we’ll roll out the ability to automatically switch the audio on select headphones from Sony, JBL and Pixel. We’re also working with Qualcomm and other partners to bring this capability to more headphones with their technology chips.

Earbuds switching the audio from a recipe video on a tablet, to a phone next to it receiving a phone call

Your overall audio experience is also getting better with Android. With spatial audio on your headsets, you’ll be immersed into another world with sound adapted to your head movements and audio filling the space around you. Based on our collaboration with Qualcomm, we’re also adopting LE Audio, a new Bluetooth audio standard that results in lower latency than classic audio, provides higher audio quality and allows you to broadcast media to more than one person at the same time. We’re working with partners like Samsung, OnePlus and Sony to bring these technologies to the Android ecosystem.

Getting things done across devices

With Phone Hub, your Chromebook can already help you receive and send messages from your Android phone. We also have plans to expand Phone Hub’s capabilities to let you stay on top of all your chats by streaming messaging apps from your Android phone directly to your Chromebook — without having to install the app on your laptop.

A phone sending a chat message, with the replies appearing on a laptop for responding and continuing the conversation

And, we’re making it easier to help you get things done on the device that’s most convenient for you. You’ll soon be able to copy and paste a URL or photo from your Android phone to your tablet and vice versa. These features will roll out to Android phones and tablets with Android 13 this fall.

Odds are, you'll keep adding more connected devices into your home - and so will your family and friends. Whether these devices are for entertainment or productivity, we’re committed to work with our partners to bring you multi-device experiences that will make your life easier.

Source: Android


Announcing Google Africa Developer Scholarship, Class 5

En Français

Opportunities for software developers in Africa are at an all time high, according to the 2021 Africa Developer Report by Google and Accenture, opportunities for software developers in Africa are at an all time high, driven primarily by the booming startup ecosystem and the global demand for remote work. Local businesses are also contributing to this demand as they seek to hire more developers to help them build a better online presence.


The report also looked at ways that technology companies can accelerate access to these opportunities through education and training programs that improve on job readiness. At Google we have been supporting developers in Africa through community and training programs for over 10 years. Today, there are more than 180 active developer communities in 30 countries across Africa. These local developer communities provide developers with the opportunity to connect, learn and grow together. The research report showed that nearly 1 in every 2 developers in Africa has been through a Google developer training or community program.





Mampho and Christopher are two software developers based in Johannesburg and Lagos respectively who have graduated from the Google Africa Developer Scholarship program. They both heard about the opportunity online and decided to apply for the Google Cloud learning track. After completing the training, they went a step further and took the Associate Cloud Engineer certification. This has enabled them to be more productive at work, and opened up a world of new opportunities for them. To quote Mampho, “The GADS program empowered me, and showed me that I could be a world class developer”


Today, we are announcing an additional 30,000 Android and Google Cloud ​​training opportunities for aspiring and professional developers in Africa. We are pleased to be partnering with Andela and Pluralsight on this program for the 5th year in a row, continuing our commitment to Africa’s developer ecosystem. Developers selected for the program will gain access to carefully curated training content and hands-on learning experiences. They will also access a pan-African network of peer learning groups and community mentors who will guide them on the learning journey.


Follow this link to apply for the scholarship.


We also invite you to join us at this year’s virtual Google IO, where we shall be sharing more about Africa’s booming developer ecosystem.

 

Posted by John Kimani, Program Manager, Africa Developer Training





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La cinquième édition du programme de bourse Google Africa Developer Scholarship (GADS) arrive !


Le marché de l’emploi en Afrique n’a jamais été autant en demande de développeurs, d’après le rapport sur les écosystèmes des développeurs en Afrique que Google a publié en 2021 en collaboration avec Accenture. Cette évolution s’explique principalement par l’essor spectaculaire des start-ups et du télétravail dans le monde. Les entreprises locales, qui recherchent des développeurs pour améliorer leur présence en ligne, contribuent aussi à cette hausse de la demande.


Depuis plus de 10 ans, Google apporte son soutien aux développeurs en Afrique par le biais de programmes de formation et de programmes communautaires. Aujourd’hui, l’Afrique compte plus de 180 communautés de développeurs actives dans 30 pays, qui offrent aux développeurs la possibilité d’échanger, d’apprendre et d’avancer ensemble. Le rapport de recherche révèle que près d’un développeur sur deux en Afrique a suivi une formation de développeur ou un programme communautaire Google.


Mampho et Christopher, deux développeurs basés respectivement à Johannesburg et à Lagos, ont obtenu leur diplôme via le programme de bourse Google Africa Developer Scholarship (GADS) destiné aux développeurs africains. Tous deux avaient entendu parler de cette opportunité offerte en ligne et décidé de postuler pour le cursus Google Cloud. Une fois cette formation terminée, ils ont passé l’examen de certification Associate Cloud Engineer. Cela leur a permis d’être plus productifs au travail et leur a ouvert tout un monde de nouvelles opportunités. « Le programme GADS m’a vraiment donné les moyens de réussir et a fait la preuve que je pouvais être un développeur de classe mondiale » explique Mampho.


Aujourd’hui, Google annonce 30 000 bourses supplémentaires de formation Android et Google Cloud, destinées à former des développeurs africains, qu’ils soient débutants ou professionnels. Nous sommes heureux de nous associer à Andela et Pluralsight sur ce programme, pour la cinquième année consécutive, et de poursuivre ainsi notre engagement envers les développeurs en Afrique. La formation donne accès à un contenu soigneusement sélectionné et à des sessions d'apprentissage pratiques. Elle donne aussi accès à un réseau panafricain de groupes d’apprentissage de pairs, et de mentors pour les guider dans leur parcours de formation.


Suivez ce lien pour postuler à la bourse d'études. Les inscriptions seront clôturées le 31 mai 2022


Rejoignez-nous cette année à la conférence virtuelle Google Input/Output, notre conférence annuelle pour les développeurs, où nous en apprendrons davantage sur l’écosystème florissant des développeurs en Afrique.



Posté par John Kimani, Directeur de programme, Formation des développeurs en Afrique

Google licenses content from news publishers under the EU copyright Directive

For many years, Google has helped people find information by linking to news and other websites, and supported publishers and journalists through products, advertising technology and funding. Over the past year, we have also launched a licensing programme called Google News Showcase, working with more than 750 publications across Europe.

Alongside these efforts, we have been negotiating with news publishers to license content under the European Copyright Directive, which EU countries are in the process of implementing into national law. So far, we have agreements that cover more than 300 national, local and specialist news publications in Germany, Hungary, France, Austria, the Netherlands and Ireland, with many more discussions ongoing.

We are now announcing the launch of a new tool to make offers to thousands more news publishers, starting in Germany and Hungary, and rolling out to other EU countries over the coming months.

How it works

The Directive allows search engines like Google to freely link to, and use “very short extracts” of press publishers' content. The law also creates new rights for publishers when longer previews of their content are used online - but without defining what exactly a short extract or a longer preview is.

Despite this uncertainty, we announced last year that we will pay news publishers for content which goes beyond links and short extracts, as we are already doing in countries such as Germany.

Through this new tool, which will be available via the Search Console, publishers will be offered an Extended News Preview (ENP) agreement with Google for this content. This will include information about what the offer is for, how to sign up and how to provide feedback.

All offers are based on consistent criteria which respect the law and existing copyright guidance, including how often a news website is displayed and how much ad revenue is generated on pages that also display previews of news content.

As always, publishers continue to have full control over whether or not their content appears in Google Search and how that content can be previewed. Publishers can change their preferences and enroll in the ENP program at any time.

Alongside our negotiations, we will continue to invest in products and programs to provide even more support for journalism in Europe and around the world. We recently announced the Innovation Challenge for Europe and the Google News Initiative Subscriptions Academy which provides publishers with an intense 8-month program focused on digital growth. We look forward to working with publishers and journalists on all these efforts in the coming months, building on our long track record of support for journalism.

Get set, go for the 31st Southeast Asia Games

It’s been a difficult couple of years for Southeast Asia, but the region is starting to get back on its feet and look towards an exciting future. And what better way to bring the region’s 650 million people together than through the uplifting power of sport?

Tomorrow, the 31st Southeast Asia (SEA) Games opens in Hanoi, Vietnam, having been rescheduled from last year. From aquatics to wushu, with 40 sports there’s something for everyone — even people who only tune in to sports every once in a while.

One of the things that makes the 31st SEA Games unique is the inclusion of Esports — a reflection of this youthful region’s diverse gamer and developer talent. Esports at the Games will consist of eight games and ten events. It’s only the second time Esports has been medal event in a multi-sport competition sanctioned by the IOC.

While travel within Southeast Asia is picking up, and a few lucky people will be able to catch the action in person, most people outside of Vietnam will be cheering on their team from a distance. We want to help by providing digital tools to make sure everyone can enjoy the Games. Here are five ways we’ll be doing that over the next two weeks.

1. Stay up to speed and an AR surprise with Google Search

When you search for the SEA Games on Google, you’ll be able to find the latest information on your favorite events, sports and players, and even see where your country ranks in the medal tally. And if you’re searching on your phone, look out for a sighting of the rare Saola — at least a 3D AR version of one anyway.

For fans of sporting trends, check out our dedicated SEA Games Trends page to see fun Search stats on your favorite moments. Pages are available for six countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam), and there will also be a deeper focus on seven sports: badminton, basketball, chess, football, taekwondo, swimming and esports.

2. Watch all the action live on YouTube

Get all the excitement of the games by catching live events, clips and highlights from official SEA Games broadcasters on their YouTube channels. YouTube can make it even easier for you to cheer on your favorite teams from home with a YouTube SEA Games Playlist that includes live feeds from local broadcasters, including VTV, Mediacorp, Astro, TV5.

3. Ask Google Assistant for updates

Stay up to speed on Games news with help from Google Assistant. Just ask questions you’re curious about (“Hey Google, how many medals does Malaysia have in the SEA Games?”), and whether you’re using your phone, speaker, TV or other enabled device, Google Assistant will have all the important details

4. Explore Vietnam virtually with Google Arts & Culture

Even if you can’t experience the Games in real life, youcan take a virtual tour of the host country with 37 new exhibits in Google Arts and Culture’s Wonders of Vietnam feature. From astonishing craft works to the world’s largest cave and cities packed with history and culture — you can see it all without leaving your chair

5. Take the hassle out of travel

If you are lucky enough to be traveling to Vietnam for the Games, you can make the most of your trip by keeping an eye on prices (just set up a “track prices” function on Google Flights) and find flights with a lower environmental impact using the Emissions filter.

Once you’re on the ground, let Google Lens be your guide. Just hold your phone up to a sign or other printed text, and Google Lens will auto-detect what language the words are written in and then translate them. You can also avoid crowds using Google Maps’ features showing how busy an area or business is, and find out businesses’ opening hours, offerings and other details through Business Profiles on Search and Maps.

Good luck to all the athletes taking part, and let the games begin!

Create Spaces and Add Members with the Google Chat API, available in Developer Preview

What’s changing

Using the Google Chat API, you can now programmatically create new Spaces and add members to those Spaces. This functionality is available in preview – developers can apply for access through our Google Workspace Developer Preview Program.

Google Workspace administrators can also use the API controls in Admin Console if they would also like to restrict access to Google Chat data.


Who’s impacted

Admins and Developers

Why you’d use it 

While it’s easy to create new Spaces and add members directly in Google Chat, there are cases where Spaces can be filled with many topics and side conversations, making it difficult to keep track of important information. Using the new API functionality, you can set up new spaces that focus on a specific topic, team, or project. For example, an on-call app can automatically create a space when an outage has been detected.

Getting started


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers


Import existing custom themes to new Google Sites

Quick summary 

You can now import a custom theme from one new Google Site to another. This highly requested feature makes it easier to reuse themes that align with your organization’s brand guidelines or your personal style across your various sites. 



Getting started 

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature. 
  • End users: In a new Site, navigate to Themes > Custom > Import theme. Visit the Help Center to learn more about changing how your site looks. 

Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers 
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts 

Resources 

Easily search for Google Meet content in Google Drive

Quick summary 

In Google Drive, you can now use app:”Google Meet” to easily find and organize Meet content such as: 

  • Meeting recordings 
  • Chat transcripts 
  • Attendance reports 
  • Polls or question and answer reports 
  • Meeting transcripts 
  • Meeting notes created in Google Calendar 

We hope this update makes it easier for you to quickly and efficiently find files related to Meet events in Drive. For example, you can search for Meet transcripts by the words they contain instead of their file format, Meet videos based on what folders they may be in (such as My Drive), or Meet recordings based on the date they were recorded. 



Getting started 

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature. 
  • End users: When searching for Meet related files in Drive, use app:“Google Meet” in your query. 

Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Extended Stable Channel Update for Desktop

The Extended Stable channel has been updated to 100.0.4896.160 for Windows and Mac which will roll out over the coming days/weeks.

A full list of changes in this build is available in the log. Interested in switching release channels? Find out how here. If you find a new issue, please let us know by filing a bug. The community help forum is also a great place to reach out for help or learn about common issues.


Srinivas Sista
Google Chrome

Stable Channel Update for Desktop

The Stable channel has been updated to 101.0.4951.64 for Windows, Mac and Linux which will roll out over the coming days/weeks.

A full list of changes in this build is available in the log. Interested in switching release channels? Find out how here. If you find a new issue, please let us know by filing a bug. The community help forum is also a great place to reach out for help or learn about common issues.


Security Fixes and Rewards

Note: Access to bug details and links may be kept restricted until a majority of users are updated with a fix. We will also retain restrictions if the bug exists in a third party library that other projects similarly depend on, but haven’t yet fixed.


This update includes 13 security fixes. Below, we highlight fixes that were contributed by external researchers. Please see the Chrome Security Page for more information.


[$5000][1316990] High CVE-2022-1633: Use after free in Sharesheet. Reported by Khalil Zhani on 2022-04-18

[$3000][1314908] High CVE-2022-1634: Use after free in Browser UI. Reported by Khalil Zhani on 2022-04-09

[$3000][1319797] High CVE-2022-1635: Use after free in Permission Prompts. Reported by Anonymous on 2022-04-26

[$NA][1297283] High CVE-2022-1636: Use after free in Performance APIs. Reported by Seth Brenith, Microsoft  on 2022-02-15

[$TBD][1311820] High CVE-2022-1637: Inappropriate implementation in Web Contents. Reported by Alesandro Ortiz on 2022-03-31

[$TBD][1316946] High CVE-2022-1638: Heap buffer overflow in V8 Internationalization. Reported by DoHyun Lee (@l33d0hyun) of DNSLab, Korea University on 2022-04-17

[$TBD][1317650] High CVE-2022-1639: Use after free in ANGLE. Reported by SeongHwan Park (SeHwa) on 2022-04-19

[$TBD][1320592] High CVE-2022-1640: Use after free in Sharing. Reported by Weipeng Jiang (@Krace) and Guang Gong of 360 Vulnerability Research Institute on 2022-04-28

[$5000][1305068] Medium CVE-2022-1641: Use after free in Web UI Diagnostics. Reported by Rong Jian of VRI on 2022-03-10


We would also like to thank all security researchers that worked with us during the development cycle to prevent security bugs from ever reaching the stable channel.

As usual, our ongoing internal security work was responsible for a wide range of fixes:

  • [1323855] Various fixes from internal audits, fuzzing and other initiatives


Many of our security bugs are detected using AddressSanitizer, MemorySanitizer, UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer, Control Flow Integrity, libFuzzer, or AFL.



Prudhvikumar Bommana

Google Chrome

Improved user interface for sharing your working location in Google Calendar

Quick summary 

In August 2021, we gave users the ability to share where they’re working from directly on their calendar. This update improves the working location feature by offering the same functionality for easily entering and updating location information in a more compact format that uses screen space more efficiently. 


Getting started 


Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Business customers
  • Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Enterprise Essentials, Education Fundamentals, Frontline customers as well as G Suite Basic customers
  • Not available to users with personal Google Accounts 

Resources