Latest news with #operatingSystem
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
OpenMind wants to be the Android operating system of humanoid robots
Many companies are focused on building robots, or the hardware components to help them move, grip objects, or interact with the world around them, Silicon Valley-based OpenMind is focused under the hood. OpenMind is building a software layer, OM1, for humanoid robots that acts as an operating system. The company compares itself to being the Android for robotics because its software is open and hardware agnostic. Stanford professor Jan Liphardt, the founder of OpenMind, told TechCrunch that humanoids and other robots have been around and able to do repetitive tasks for decades. But now that humanoids are being developed for use cases that require more human-to-machine interactions, like having a humanoid in your home, they need a new operating system that thinks more like a human. 'All of a sudden, this world is opening where machines are able to interact with humans in ways I've certainly never before seen,' Liphardt said. 'We're very much believers here that it's not just about the humans, but we really think of ourselves as a company that is a collaboration between machines and humans.' OpenMind unveiled on Monday a new protocol called FABRIC that allows robots to verify identity and share context and information with other robots. Unlike humans, machines can learn almost instantly, Liphardt said, which means giving them a better way to connect to other robots will allow them to more easily train and absorb new information. Liphardt gave the example of languages and how robots could connect to each other and share data on how to speak different languages, which would help them better interact with more people without having to be taught each language by a human directly. 'Humans take it for granted that they can interact with any other human on Earth,' Liphardt said. 'Humans have built a lot of infrastructure around us that allows us to trust other people, call them, text them and interact and coordinate and do things together. Machines, of course, are going to be no different.' OpenMind was founded in 2024 and is gearing up to ship its first fleet of 10 OM1-powered robotic dogs by September. Liphardt said that he's a big believer in getting the tech out there and iterating on it after the fact. 'We full well expect all the humans that will be hosting these quadrupeds, they'll come back with a long list of things they didn't like or they want, and then it's up to us to very, very quickly iterate and improve the machines,' he said. The company also recently raised a $20 million funding round led by Pantera Capital with participation from Ribbit, Coinbase Ventures, and Pebblebed, among other strategic investors and angel investors. Now, the company is focused on getting its tech into people's homes and starting to iterate on the product. 'The most important thing for us is to get robots out there and to get feedback,' Liphardt said. 'Our goal as a company is to do as many of these tests as we can, so that we can very rapidly identify the most interesting opportunities where the capabilities of the robots today are optimally matched against what humans are looking for.' Sign in to access your portfolio
TechCrunch
3 days ago
- Business
- TechCrunch
OpenMind wants to be the Android operating system of humanoid robots
Many companies are focused on building robots, or the hardware components to help them move, grip objects, or interact with the world around them, Silicon Valley-based OpenMind is focused under the hood. OpenMind is building a software layer, OM1, for humanoid robots that acts as an operating system. The company compares itself to being the Android for robotics because its software is open and hardware agnostic. Stanford professor Jan Liphardt, the founder of OpenMind, told TechCrunch that humanoids and other robots have been around and able to do repetitive tasks for decades. But now that humanoids are being developed for use cases that require more human-to-machine interactions, like having a humanoid in your home, they need a new operating system that thinks more like a human. 'All of a sudden, this world is opening where machines are able to interact with humans in ways I've certainly never before seen,' Liphardt said. 'We're very much believers here that it's not just about the humans, but we really think of ourselves as a company that is a collaboration between machines and humans.' OpenMind unveiled on Monday a new protocol called FABRIC that allows robots to verify identity and share context and information with other robots. Unlike humans, machines can learn almost instantly, Liphardt said, which means giving them a better way to connect to other robots will allow them to more easily train and absorb new information. Liphardt gave the example of languages and how robots could connect to each other and share data on how to speak different languages, which would help them better interact with more people without having to be taught each language by a human directly. Techcrunch event Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. San Francisco | REGISTER NOW 'Humans take it for granted that they can interact with any other human on Earth,' Liphardt said. 'Humans have built a lot of infrastructure around us that allows us to trust other people, call them, text them and interact and coordinate and do things together. Machines, of course, are going to be no different.' OpenMind was founded in 2024 and is gearing up to ship its first fleet of 10 OM1-powered robotic dogs by September. Liphardt said that he's a big believer in getting the tech out there and iterating on it after the fact. 'We full well expect all the humans that will be hosting these quadrupeds, they'll come back with a long list of things they didn't like or they want, and then it's up to us to very, very quickly iterate and improve the machines,' he said. The company also recently raised a $20 million funding round led by Pantera Capital with participation from Ribbit, Coinbase Ventures, and Pebblebed, among other strategic investors and angel investors. Now, the company is focused on getting its tech into people's homes and starting to iterate on the product. 'The most important thing for us is to get robots out there and to get feedback,' Liphardt said. 'Our goal as a company is to do as many of these tests as we can, so that we can very rapidly identify the most interesting opportunities where the capabilities of the robots today are optimally matched against what humans are looking for.'
The Verge
15-07-2025
- The Verge
Our biggest questions about ChromeOS and Android merging
Samit Sarkar, Google's head of Android ecosystems, recently confirmed that Android and ChromeOS will be merged into a single platform, reigniting a slew of questions about the future of the operating systems. Combining them makes sense. It made sense way back in 2013, and it was first supposed to happen back in 2015, but until recently, that mostly just amounted to Chromebooks being able to run Android apps. Last year, Google announced that ChromeOS would be built on the Android tech stack, including the Android kernel. Android has an enormous app ecosystem, but many of those apps still struggle on larger screens, like tablets. And Android doesn't have great multitasking or window management, which are both important on large displays. ChromeOS, on the other hand, does browser stuff and window management really well, but doesn't really support non-web apps. Chromebooks have been able to run Android apps for a long time, which helps fill some of the compatibility gaps. But those apps often suck to use on a laptop with a mouse cursor. Some apps are too small and don't adapt to running on a bigger screen; the Android Slack app can't show two threads side-by-side on a Chromebook like the desktop app can. And some are just wonky, like Discord not always responding to mouse clicks. Spotify works fine, but its mobile app looks a little sparse on a large laptop screen, and you have to remember to click and hold instead of using secondary clicks (which just feels unnatural on a trackpad or mouse). This convergence was already happening anyway: the Chrome browser on Android is getting extensions — a key advantage of desktop Chrome. Android is also getting a Dex-like desktop mode, and as part of that, Google is making a big push for adaptive apps in Android 16. Making Android apps work well in desktop mode is already part of optimizing them for ChromeOS. When Android has a desktop mode and Chrome with extensions, and Chromebooks can run Android apps, is there any reason to keep them separate? A unified OS would speed up development time for both phone and laptop form factors, and make it easier for developers to fill in that middle ground where tablets live. Talk of a unified Android and ChromeOS has been going on for well over 10 years. It's seemed like the logical next step for both of Google's operating systems, yet it never made much headway. There was speculation for a while that Google's experimental open-source Fuchsia OS might be that unified platform, but after years of rumors, teases, and job postings — it ended up on some Nest Hubs. Part of it is surely that Arm chips are finally fast enough for laptops. Arm-based Chromebooks are not new (there was a Samsung one back in 2012), but until very recently, good Chromebooks came with Intel Core i3 and i5 processors. The MediaTek Kompanio Ultra 910 chip in the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 (Google's new flagship) is powerful enough to outclass the x86 chips in other Chromebooks, and with better battery life. Chromebooks with Qualcomm Snapdragon X processors — the chips powering the resurgence of Windows on Arm — are also expected soon. With both Android phones and Chromebooks running on Arm, focusing on a single architecture should allow for much easier optimization across this potential new OS. And if you already own an x86-based Chromebook you should hopefully get the remaining years of software support that Google promised — as much as 10 years in some cases. Unlike Microsoft or even Apple during their transitions to Arm, Google doesn't have a massive library of x86-compatible ChromeOS apps to worry about porting over. As mentioned above, Google is already testing a desktop mode for Android phones. I've never used Samsung's DeX, but the concept of docking your phone and getting a full featured desktop experience is appealing. If that's the least of what we get from this merge, it would be nifty. But better desktop mode for Android has other implications. Imagine a 2-in-1 detachable running this combined OS. Like a Pixel C, but good. ChromeOS has a fairly buttoned-up aesthetic based off of Google's older Material Design, while Android is being revamped with the more youthful and colorful Material Three Expressive. Who wins this UI battle? I wouldn't mind seeing ChromeOS get a little more fun and joyful. It would make for an interesting contrast with Windows 11 and macOS. Just give me customization options, please. Both Chrome and Android are big names. Unifying them under one new name might risk confusing the average user. I'd venture that the Android and ChromeOS brands will remain intact. Perhaps they'll instead fall under some convoluted umbrella brand. As my colleague Nathan Edwards quipped to me, 'It'll probably be something like 'Chromebook, powered by Android' or 'Android with ChromeOS.'' Something that makes the product managers happy and confuses all of us when we have to read a product name like Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 999 with ChromeOS powered by Android. As far as Android tablets have come (which, let's be honest, isn't really that far), this future OS can only make them better. But it's still going to take effort and dedication from app developers. Google is trying to help bridge that gap, but devs still have to care enough and find it lucrative enough to put in the work.
Phone Arena
14-07-2025
- Business
- Phone Arena
Google just confirmed a big shift for Android
— Sameer Samat, President of Android ecosystem at Google. Receive the latest Android news By subscribing you agree to our terms and conditions and privacy policy This offhand remark appears to be the first public confirmation of Google's long-rumored initiative. According to prior reporting, including a November story we covered here , Google is not building an entirely new operating system from scratch. Instead, the company is planning to migrate Chrome OS features and functionality directly into means Android is expected to take the lead as the core system, with Chrome OS components integrated into it over time. This approach allows Google to unify its efforts without forcing a complete reinvention, while also aligning with Android's recent push toward improving its large-screen fact, Android has already started evolving in this direction. Google has introduced a range of updates specifically aimed at enhancing productivity on tablets and laptops. These include a proper desktop mode, windowed multitasking, better support for external displays, and improved app behavior on large interest in how users engage with laptops today suggests the project is still in development, with user feedback likely playing a role in shaping the final result. While the executive did not share any release timelines or product roadmaps, his statement indicates that work is already underway behind the potential merger could also put Google in a stronger position to compete with Apple's iPadOS and macOS ecosystem, especially for users who switch between devices or want continuity across phones, tablets, and laptops. By creating a more seamless and consistent experience across form factors, Google may aim to address one of Android's long-standing challenges: fragmentation between details remain scarce, this is one of the clearest signals yet that Google wants to simplify its ecosystem. Unifying Chrome OS and Android could help consolidate development efforts, improve user experience across devices, and better position Android for productivity. That said, Google's history with platform consolidation (think Fuchsia) suggests execution will be everything. Let's hope this strategy pays off.
GSM Arena
14-07-2025
- GSM Arena
Google confirms plans to merge ChromeOS into Android
Michail, 14 July 2025 A Google executive officially confirmed the rumors that Android and ChromeOS are merging into a single operating system. Sameer Samat who is the President of Android Ecosystem at Google acknowledged that Android and ChromeOS will be combined into a single platform. … we're going to be combining ChromeOS and Android into a single platform, and I am very interested in how people are using their laptops these days and what they're getting done.' - Sameer Samat, President of Android Ecosystem This is not the first time we've heard about Google's plan to merge Chrome OS into Android, but there was no official confirmation from Google previously. Android has been gaining specific features for large screens, including a dedicated desktop mode, enhanced windowing capabilities, and improved scaling for different screen sizes. A previous report suggested that Google's aim with the move is to become more competitive with Apple's iPad. This would allow users to get more work done on Android tablets. Google is also rumored to be working on a Pixel laptop, which would help it expand its product ecosystem even further. Source | Via
