Google likely turning Chrome OS into Android to take on the iPad

Google is reportedly working on turning Chrome OS into Android to bring the best of both worlds on big screen devices like tablets.

Similarly, the Basic and Standard plans are also available at Rs 11, offering 100 GB and 200 GB of storage, respectively. Their regular monthly prices are Rs 130 and Rs 210, and these will also revert to their usual rates after three months. (Image: Reuters)

Google, one of the largest tech companies in the world, has been selling Android-powered smartphones and Chrome OS-powered laptops for more than a decade now. Android is undoubtedly one of the best operating systems for small-screen devices like mobile phones, but it is an unoptimised mess on large-screen tablets. And while we do have Chrome OS, the platform has its issues like a lack of apps.

However, that might soon change, as a recent report by Android Authority suggests that Google is working on a multi-year project to turn ChromeOS into Android. In the past few years, the tech giant has added several new features to both platforms to bridge the gap between the two, but these platforms are yet to make a dent in Apple’s dominance in the tablet segment.

While nothing is official at the moment, the report suggests that unlike Google’s previous attempts to unify these operating systems, the company may be “fully migrating Chrome OS over to Android.” Google has yet to publicly confirm any of this, but in the last couple of months, the company did mention that Chrome OS will be “embracing portions of the Android stack, like the Android Linux kernel and Android frameworks.”

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It goes on to say that it is still unclear how the move will affect Google’s Chrome OS or Chromebook branding, but Google likely wants upcoming Chromebooks to run on Android. While there is still a lot of work to do, the desktop windowing changes Google introduced a few weeks ago with Android 15 look like Google has already started its work to turn Chrome OS into Android.

The publication also states that the new Android features like improved keyboard and mouse support, multiple desktops and other changes “are part of Google’s internal Android-on-laptop project.”, something which may or may not see the light of day.