Google I/O 2021 is scheduled to take place from May 18-20 this year. The event is happening after a year's break since Google canceled last year's I/O event due to the pandemic.
At its annual developer conference, Google is expected to provide more details about the next version of Android, announce new developer tools, and more. Below is a roundup of everything you should expect from this year's Google I/O, what the event is all about, and how you can watch it live.
What Is Google I/O?
Google I/O is the company's annual developer conference where it talks about all its important products and services, and unveils new features for them. The event usually starts with a keynote from Google's CEO, where he makes some major product or feature announcements.
As a part of the event, Google holds multiple consumer and developer sessions where it talks about various improvements to its products, and highlights how it has improved its development tools to aid developers. It also holds AMA sessions with various teams inside Google, developer meetups, workshops, fireside chat sessions with key engineering teams, and more.
The keynotes will be live-streamed for all to watch, but other sessions will require prior registration before the event.
For developers, Google I/O provides an opportunity to interact with the team that actually makes the tools they use to build their apps. Such sessions are also helpful for Google developers as it allows them to collect important feedback.
The event is usually held in Mountain View, California. However, due to the pandemic, Google is hosting this year's I/O event virtually.
Google I/O 2021 is scheduled to open with a two-hour keynote that Alphabet's CEO Sundar Pichai will host. The opening keynote and some other sessions are always live-streamed, but Google will be holding all the sessions virtually this year due to COVID-related travel restrictions.
The upside to this is that you can attend the event virtually for free; normally, Google charges developers a registration fee for in-person I/O events.
When Is Google I/O 2021?
Google I/O 2021 is scheduled to take place from May 18-20, 2021. The event will start with a two-hour keynote hosted by Sundar Pichai, scheduled to begin from 10 am PT on May 18.
There are multiple other sessions and keynotes that Google will be hosting over three days. You can find the full schedule of Google I/O 2021 on the official website.
How Can You Watch the Google I/O 2021 Opening Keynote Live?
Google will be live streaming the opening keynote and all other sessions and events from Google I/O 2021. You can watch the opening keynote on YouTube. You will find the live stream details on the Google I/O website before the event starts.
While all sessions at Google I/O 2021 will be live-streamed, you won't be able to access all of them. To attend workshops, AMAs, live Q&A, and some others, you need to register for Google I/O through the official site.
What Could Google Announce at I/O 2021?
Android 12 Beta
Google announced Android 12 back in February, but there's still a lot that remains unknown about the OS. The company is expected to provide more details about the new features and changes in Android 12, including a new version of Material Design, a system-wide theming engine, and improved multitasking features.
Alongside such feature reveals, Google will likely also kickstart the Android 12 beta program for selected Pixel and non-Pixel devices. Since the beta will be released for public testing, it will be more polished and pack more features than the developer preview builds of Android 12.
Google Assistant
Over the last few I/O events, Google has unveiled major new features and improvements to Google Assistant. The virtual assistant plays a big role in Google's product ecosystem. This year's I/O should not be any different, so expect Google to announce some new additions to one of its flagship products.
Wear OS
Google's smartwatch platform Wear OS has not really taken off. The company itself has not focused on the platform enough, as a result of which it is lagging in almost every key metric, including performance, battery life, health tracking, and more.
This could be the year that Google finally takes Wear OS seriously.
There are rumors of the next Samsung Galaxy Watch running Wear OS, which should help the platform. Google could use this opportunity to launch a revamped version of Wear OS that fixes all the drawbacks of the current iteration. The company recently launched Gboard for Wear OS, confirming that it has not forgotten the platform or abandoned it completely.
New Smart Home Products
Google has a "What's New in Smart Home" keynote scheduled for May 19th at 4:15 pm PT. The company has already confirmed in a blog post that it will be making new smart home product announcements at the keynote.
With the second-gen Nest Hub already announced, it is unclear what other smart home products Google will be launching at I/O 2021. We could possibly be looking at new Nest-branded security cameras or other such smart home gadgets.
Google Stadia
Despite Google shutting down its in-house Stadia game development studio, the company says that the cloud gaming platform is alive and well, and it intends to launch over 100 new games for it in 2021.
If Google is truly taking Stadia seriously, it could announce Stadia support for Chromecast with Google TV and Android TV, new third-party games, and other product improvements for its cloud gaming platform at I/O 2021.
Google Pixel 5a and Pixel Buds A?
Google tends to launch a new budget Pixel handset in Q2 every year. With the Pixel 4a due for a refresh, Google I/O 2021 could be the perfect stage for the company to announce the devices. The company has already confirmed that it will be launching the Pixel 5a this year.
This time around, the Pixel 5a could be joined with some budget wireless earbuds, the Pixel Buds A. Admittedly though, there's a high probability of Google not announcing the Pixel 5a at its developer conference and instead focusing on its other services since this is a developer-oriented event.
The Pixel 5a and the Pixel Buds A could possibly launch in June instead.
Expect a Lot More From Google I/O 2021
There's a lot more that Google could announce at I/O 2021. It could announce new features and improvements for Google Duplex, YouTube and YouTube Music, Google Meet, Google Lens, Chrome OS, or any of its many other products.
Basically, expect Google to touch on all its key products and services and provide important updates about them at I/O 2021.