Google appears to have accidentally revealed its Android desktop interface after a public bug report on the Chromium Issue Tracker included screenshots of the unreleased large-screen Android experience.
Spotted by 9to5Google, the screenshots accompanied a report addressing Chrome Incognito tab behaviour, but the attached media unintentionally exposed interface elements that differ substantially from existing Android tablet layouts and phone-based desktop projection modes.
Metadata in the report identifies the test device as an HP Elite Dragonfly 13.5 Chromebook running a 12th-Gen Intel Core Alder Lake-U processor, suggesting that Google relies on existing Chromebook hardware for development.
References to the internal board codename Brya indicate a development environment built around ChromeOS-class hardware instead of conventional ARM-based Android tablets or phones.
Build information visible in the report references “ALOS,” short for Aluminum OS, which has previously surfaced as Google’s internal codename for a desktop-optimised version of Android.
Additional strings identify the build as Android 16, aligning the leaked interface with Google’s major Android platform rather than a standalone experimental branch.
A first look at Android’s new desktop-style UI
Compared with current Android large-screen modes, the leaked interface shows a noticeably taller status bar designed for widescreen displays, placing time with seconds on the top row, followed by a full date indicator.
System icons appear grouped on the right side, including battery status, Wi-Fi, notifications, keyboard language, the Gemini icon, and an on-screen screen recording control.
Image Credit: 9to5Google
The screen recording interface closely resembles Android’s mobile overlay, suggesting Google prioritises continuity across device categories even as it scales the interface to desktop-class displays.
The taskbar mirrors the existing Android large-screen taskbar, indicating Google has retained familiar navigation patterns rather than introducing an entirely new launcher or dock system.
A slightly modified mouse cursor with a visible tail appears in the recording, hinting at desktop-specific refinements aimed at improving pointer visibility on large external displays.
ChromeOS-style window controls come to Android
Google Chrome within the leaked environment largely matches its current large-screen Android presentation, with the notable addition of an Extensions button typically reserved for desktop browsers.
The footage also shows split-screen multitasking and windowed applications, with window controls placed similarly to ChromeOS, including minimise, fullscreen, and close buttons aligned at the top-right.
Desktop windowing behaviour otherwise remains consistent with existing Android implementations, retaining app names on the left and a layout that avoids fully adopting traditional desktop operating system conventions.
The leak suggests Google continues to evolve Android’s desktop ambitions incrementally, blending ChromeOS-inspired elements with Android’s existing large-screen framework rather than replacing either outright.
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