Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Administration, Android Developer
At the moment, we’re launching the developer preview of the Android XR SDK – a complete growth package for Android XR. It is the latest platform within the Android household constructed for prolonged actuality (XR) headsets (and glasses sooner or later!). You’ll have limitless alternatives to create and develop experiences that mix digital and bodily worlds, utilizing acquainted Android APIs, instruments and open requirements created for XR. All of this implies: in the event you construct for Android, you are already constructing for XR! Learn on to get began with growth for headsets.
With the Android XR SDK you possibly can:
- Break freed from conventional screens by spatializing your app with wealthy 3D parts, spatial panels, and spatial audio that convey a pure sense of depth, scale, and tangible realism
- Transport your customers to a fantastical digital area, or have interaction with them in their very own houses or workplaces
- Benefit from pure, multimodal interplay capabilities equivalent to fingers and eyes
“We imagine Android XR is a game-changer for storytelling. It permits us to merge narrative depth with superior interactive options, creating an immersive world the place audiences can have interaction with characters and tales like by no means earlier than.”
Your apps on Android XR
The Android XR SDK is constructed on the present foundations of Android app growth. We’re additionally bringing the Play Retailer to Android XR, the place most Android apps will routinely be made obtainable with none further growth effort. Customers will be capable of uncover and use your current apps in an entire new dimension. To distinguish your current Compose app, you could opt-in, to routinely spatialize Materials Design (M3) parts and Compose for adaptive layouts in XR.
The Android XR SDK has one thing for each developer:
Constructing with Kotlin and Android Studio? You may really feel proper at house with the Jetpack XR SDK, a collection of acquainted libraries and instruments to simplify growth and speed up productiveness.
- Utilizing Unity’s real-time 3D engine? The Android XR Extensions for Unity gives the packages it’s worthwhile to construct or port highly effective, immersive experiences.
- Growing on the net? Use WebXR so as to add immersive experiences supported on Chrome.
- Working with native languages like C/C++? Android XR helps the OpenXR 1.1 customary.
Creating with Jetpack XR SDK
The Jetpack XR SDK consists of new Jetpack libraries purpose-built for XR. The highlights embody:
- Jetpack Compose for XR – allows you to declaratively create spatial UI layouts and spatialize your current 2D UI constructed with Compose or Views
- ARCore for Jetpack XR – brings highly effective notion capabilities on your app to grasp the true world
“With Android XR, we will convey Calm immediately into your world, capturing the senses and permitting you to expertise it in a deeper and extra transformative approach. By collaborating intently with the Android XR crew on this cutting-edge expertise, we’ve reimagined methods to create a way of depth and area, leading to a stage of immersion that immediately helps you’re feeling extra current, centered, and relaxed.”
Kickstart your Jetpack XR SDK journey with the Hi there XR Pattern, an easy introduction to the important options of Jetpack Compose for XR.
Study extra about growing with the Jetpack XR SDK.
We’re additionally introducing new instruments and capabilities to the most recent preview of Android Studio Meerkat to spice up productiveness and simplify your creation course of for Android XR.
- Use the brand new Android XR Emulator to create a virtualized XR gadget for deploying and testing apps constructed with the Jetpack XR SDK. The emulator consists of XR-specific controls for utilizing a keyboard and mouse to navigate an emulated digital area.
- Use the Android XR template to get a jump-start on creating an app with Jetpack Compose for XR.
- Use the up to date Structure Inspector to examine and debug spatialized UI parts created with Jetpack Compose for XR.
Study extra in regards to the XR enabled instruments in Android Studio and the Android XR Emulator.
Creating with Unity
We have partnered with Unity to natively combine their real-time 3D engine with Android XR beginning with Unity 6. Unity is introducing the Unity OpenXR: Android XR package deal for bringing your multi-platform XR experiences to Android XR.
Unity is including Android XR assist to those widespread XR packages:
We’re additionally rolling out the Android XR Extensions for Unity with samples and modern options equivalent to mouse interplay profile, surroundings mix mode, personalised hand mesh, object monitoring, and extra.
“Having already introduced Demeo to most commercially obtainable platforms, it is secure to say we have been impressed with the method of adapting the sport to run on Android XR.”
Take a look at our getting began information for unity and Unity’s weblog submit to be taught extra.
Creating for the Net
Chrome on Android XR helps the WebXR customary. If you happen to’re constructing for the online, you possibly can improve current websites with 3D content material or construct new immersive experiences. You can too use full-featured frameworks like A-Body or PlayCanvas to create digital worlds, or you should utilize an easier API like model-viewer so your customers can visualize merchandise in an e-commerce website. And since WebXR is an open customary, the identical experiences you construct for cell AR units or devoted VR {hardware} seamlessly work on Android XR.
Study extra about growing with WebXR.
Constructed on Open Requirements
We’re persevering with the Android custom of constructing with open requirements. On the coronary heart of the Android notion stack is OpenXR – a high-performance, cross-platform API centered on portability. Android XR is compliant with OpenXR 1.1, and we’re additionally increasing the Open XR requirements with modern vendor extensions to introduce highly effective world-sensing capabilities equivalent to:
- AI-powered hand mesh, designed to adapt to the form and measurement of fingers to raised signify the range of your customers
- Subtle gentle estimation, for lighting your digital content material to match real-world lighting situations
- New trackables that allow you to convey actual world objects like laptops, telephones, keyboards, and mice right into a digital surroundings
The Android XR SDK additionally helps open customary codecs equivalent to glTF 2.0 for 3D fashions and OpenEXR for high-dynamic-range environments.
Constructing the long run collectively
We could not be extra proud or excited to be saying the Developer Preview of the Android XR SDK. We’re releasing this developer preview, as a result of we need to construct the way forward for XR along with you. We welcome your suggestions and might’t wait to work with you and construct your concepts and ideas into the platform. Your ardour, experience, and daring concepts are completely important as we proceed to construct Android XR.
We sit up for interacting along with your apps, reimagined to reap the benefits of the distinctive spatial capabilities of Android XR, utilizing acquainted instruments like Android Studio and Jetpack Compose. We’re keen to go to the superb 3D worlds you construct utilizing highly effective instruments and open requirements like Unity and OpenXR. Most of all, we will’t wait to go on this journey with all of you that make up the superb group of Android and Unity builders.
To get began creating and growing for Android XR, try developer.android.com/develop/xr the place you will see that the entire instruments, libraries and sources it’s worthwhile to create with the Android XR SDK! If you’re taken with gaining access to prerelease {hardware} and collaborating with the Android XR crew, categorical your curiosity to take part in an Android XR Developer Bootcamp in 2025 by filling out this type.