What’s Next for Android? ‘Gingerbread’?

Posted by: jtlondon on: October 29, 2009

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Cupcakes. Donuts. Eclairs. Flan. After gorging myself on eclairs today (see our PCMag Radio episode for visuals), I found myself wondering about Google’s whole scheme of naming Android OS releases for delicious desserts. Was there anything before Cupcake? And what will follow Flan? Fortunately, Google engineering program manager Ryan Gibson had the answers.

For the uninitiated, Android 1.5 was codenamed “Cupcake.” Version 1.6 was “Donut,” and the new 2.0 will be “Eclair.” The next version will be “Flan.” Each version is heralded by a giant fake pastry appearing on the Google campus lawn.

Q: How did Android versions come to be named after desserts?
A: We wanted an alphabetical naming scheme that would also provide a fun theme for our small release celebrations.  We considered predatory animals, and stomach viruses but they are a lot less fun to have at a party.
Q: What were the “A” and “B” desserts? Apple crumb? Babka?
A: There actually were no “A” and “B” software updates named after a dessert. It just started with Cupcake.

Q: Who determines the dessert names?
A: It’s a collaborative effort from the entire team, company, spouses, Google chefs, random passer-bys and the Android development community all throwing out ideas and recipes.  My office door is festooned with suggestions for the future.  It is very motivational to look up from work and see pictures of tasty treats.
Q: Are the desserts actually served at the Google cafeteria at any point?
A: Absolutely!
Q: Have you determined any desserts past “F”?
A: The discussion is as heated as an oven full of cupcakes  We would like to have a Gingerbread House, but that depends a lot on what happens with the housing market by then.