Google has run out of letters and is starting over. Android 16 has an unexpected name

• Android 16 is codenamed Baklava, a popular puff pastry dessert
• This is unexpected, given that Android 15 was codenamed Vanilla Ice Cream
• However, the new dessert codename reflects a change in Android’s build process

Google has traditionally named individual versions of Android after sweets. Every other significant release was thus associated with a goodie whose name began with the corresponding letter of the alphabet. So we had Apple Pie, Banana Bread, Cupcake, Donut, etc. As of Android 10, this naming was not official, but only internal, but it still continued to be used. Android 15 has the internal name Vanilla Ice Cream, so we would expect Android 16 to be called Waffle or Walnut Cake, for example. But Google named Android 16 for a reason Baklava.

Developer teamb58 noticed the changes in the AOSP code. Specifically, this is code to enable the compression of any APEX module that will launch with next year’s Android release. What’s interesting about the code is how it references next year’s Android release. Specifically field settings min_sdk_version = "Baklava". In contrast, the field for this year’s edition is set at min_sdk_version = "VanillaIceCream".

In the next place we find the version control, where the name is again mentioned Baklava. Until the definition of a specific API is ready, the internal markup is used. In this case, the verification is that we are on Android 15 or higher. As a programmer, it scares me a bit that numbers are used instead of constants…

Android 16 Baklava

Why the change?

Why is this change happening? Server Android Authority speculatesthat it’s related to a change in Android builds. Each build has a label, for example the March update for Pixel tablets was labeled AP1A.240305.019.A1. June would be AP2A.240605.024 and the October update will probably be something like AP3A.241005.0XX. If we look at the latest builds, we can see a clear pattern.

Android builds

It can be seen that the new builds do not continue alphabetically, but start again from A. Android 16 builds can be expected to be labeled BP1A… etc. This explains the change in the choice of sweetness for the internal name. But why is Android 15 named Vanilla Ice Cream, even though the build starts with the letter A? Android Authority speculates that perhaps the decision to change the designation of builds was made only at a time when there were already mentions of Vanilla Ice Cream in the code, and a retroactive change could introduce errors into the project.

Baklava

Did you expect Android 16 to be named after W?

Source: AndroidAuthority