Forget Android 15, your phone could have Android 16 sooner than expected

Google has largely stuck to the same release schedule for its annual Android builds for the last 12 years. Bar slight deviations, it has pushed each major update to its own Android phones between late August to early October.

However, that could change from next year, as Android 16 will reportedly arrive much earlier – anytime before the end of June, in fact.

That's quite a revelation considering the latest Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro XL are still waiting for the full release of Android 15.

Android Authority found the reference to Android 16's release date in the Compatibility Definition Document (CDD) for the current version of the OS. The build is codenamed 25Q2 twice in the document.

"Note: This requirement will become MUST in the 25Q2 release," it says in one instance.

"Note: The STRONGLY RECOMMENDED requirements (C-SR-20) will become MUSTs in Android 25Q2," it then repeats.

According to the site, Android 15 was previously referred to as 24Q3 and was originally intended for release in September, which fits. So while that particular release slipped to October, it suggests we can expect to see its predecessor arrive between the beginning of April and the end of June 2025.

Could that also mean that Google will unveil next year's Pixel phone refresh even sooner, too? It was certainly weird that the Pixel 9 family hit stores before Android 15 is available, so maybe it just wants to avoid the same scenario next year.

We'll have to wait until we see a developer build of Android 16 before we know for sure, as that'll give us a better idea of where Google is on the timescale.

And, then there's the release of Android 15 to get out of the way first. After all, manufacturers will likely still be catching up with their own variants into the first few months of 2025.