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HUNG-YING TYAN: Hello, everyone.
My name is Hung-ying.
I'm here to talk about GSI,
the generic system images.
GSI is by definition, the
purest form of Android framework
that we can build from AOSP.
By purest, we mean that it
doesn't contain any device
maker or carrier customization.
You will want to ask--
AOSP has been there
for 10 years--
why does it become
a thing right now?
It is because GSI is the central
piece in Treble compliance.
So remember the project, Treble?
We took on the Android
updatability problem
with Treble.
About two years ago
in the Oreo timeframe.
We re-architected Android
to have a clear boundary
between the Android framework
and the hardware related vendor
implementation.
With this boundary
clearly defined,
we no longer need to update
the vendor implementation
with the Android framework.
So this has greatly reduced the
cause and time for device maker
to update their
Android framework.
Now, to make sure that
the boundary is not
altered by device
makers at will,
we require every
Treble certified device
to pass a set of
CTS and VTS tests
with their Android
framework replaced by GSI.
So with all these powerful tools
in place, about a year ago,
we started to see the
momentum of faster Android Pie
adoption this year.
So let's take a look at
the Android beta program
at Google I/O last year.
Only Nexus and Pixel phones
were available for you
to try out Android Oreo.
And fast forward one
year later at Google I/O
this year, it was
the first time ever
that we had non-Google phones
to join the beta lineup.
And it's not one,
it's not two, it's
7 device makers joining us.
So the progress was phenomenal.
We know we are on
the right track.
And we will continue
to push for it.
Now despite that GSI is
the central piece in Treble
compliance, we feel that it has
a lot more potential than that.
So we set out a goal to make GSI
be more accessible and useful,
not just for device makers, but
also for the general public,
including app developers
like you and even consumers.
An important first
step toward that goal
is to make GSI
available in AOSP.
So for this, we have
published Pie GSI in AOSP.
So now you can download
and build Pie GSI today.
We are also exploring
ways to make
future GSI available
earlier than the release
of next Android version.
So you will be able to try out
next century version earlier
over GSI.
And at the same
time, we can also
get early feedback from you.
So the benefit is mutual.
So please stay tuned for our
further announcements on this.
Finally, we understand
that trying out GSI
can be cumbersome sometimes.
We are looking into different
ways to improve the process.
Right now we have an idea of
trying out GSI without actually
flashing GSI onto the device.
But I'm not going
into detail here.
We do have a working early
prototype at our demo booth.
In addition to that, we also
prepare a set of devices.
They are all running
on the same Pie GSI.
So please do check out our
demos at the Android platform
sandbox.
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