Your Google Pixel phone could get another big software upgrade soon – Android 17 is just "around the corner"

Google is preparing for the launch of Android 17, which is expected to land in final form sometime around June 2026. The unexpected news comes as the result of Google talking about the beta process coming to an end for Android 16.

In recent years, Google has pulled forward Android releases, meaning that Pixel devices appear to be well ahead of many Android rivals in terms of software version. Android 16 was officially released on 10 June 2025, so the timeline shouldn't come as a surprise, but it's a big change from the October updates that we previously saw.

One of the big changes here is the departure from having new software linked to the launch of a new device, with Android seemingly doing its own things separately from Google's Pixel hardware programme.

The news comes directly from Google in a Reddit thread (via TechAdvisor), mentioning that the Android 17 Beta 1 is just "around the corner". These betas normally don't have much that's consumer-facing, focusing on core changes that developers would need to adapt to.

As the beta process rolls out, there might be the introduction of new features, but that's not always the case. For Android 16, the software landed without making huge changes – that instead came with the Material 3 Expressive update, which changed a lot of the visual design around Android.

Why Google Pixel phones benefit most

Pixel phones are the first beneficiaries of the new software and that remains one of the key advantages of owning a Pixel device – as well as getting early access to beta software if you want to have a look at it.

The original message talks about the transition from the Android 16 beta into Android 17 and how users can opt out of the beta programme without having phone data wiped. That's basically the route to get back to running normal release software.

We don't currently know a lot about Android 17, but it was previously suggested this would be when Google opened up to third-party app stores as part of the settlement of the Epic vs Google case.

It's thought that moving from Android to iOS could be easier in Android 17, while it's also been suggested that frosted backgrounds and increased translucency could come to the visual design, while splitting the Quick Settings and Notifications could also be an option.

These features are popular on third-party Android skins common from other manufacturers and could become a native Android feature.