Android XR and ChromeOS could be a match made in heaven

Recently announced to take on devices like the Meta Quest, Apple Vision Pro, and Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, Android XR looks impressive thus far. With support for full-blown VR applications and day-to-day AR glasses as well, it feels like the sky is the limit for what Google might be able to accomplish with Android XR as products actually begin shipping in 2025.

While Meta definitely needs real competition in the VR space (sorry Apple, but $3500 headsets hardly count as serious competition in a vertical that Meta completely owns for the time being) and I’m wildly excited for the prospect of AR glasses that are usable all day, every day; there’s an application of face-wearable screens that hasn’t been talked about too much just yet with Android XR.

Desktop productivity with ChromeOS

Sure, having a few open Android apps floating in space around you would be cool, but wouldn’t it be far more productive for Android XR headsets to work seamlessly with Chromebooks to deliver the productive, windowed ChromeOS experience in virtual space?

I like to imagine a future where a not-completely-ridiculous-looking headset could be a part of my everyday carry, plopped on my head while working, and could seamlessly deliver a multi-monitor setup for my Chromebook anywhere I am. With extended displays being the primary reason I like working at my desk, this sort of functionality would completely upend my workflow in the best of ways.

With plenty of rumor and speculation about what Google is doing with ChromeOS and Chromebooks moving forward on the Android Kernel, this could be one of the places where this move towards deeper cohesion makes a ton of sense. If Android is going to be at the core of the Chromebook experience (quite literally at the kernel level), then a deep integration between ChromeOS and Android XR isn’t only possible, but maybe even probable.

For what its worth, as I’ve really marinated in all the Android-ChromeOS speculation, I really think many of the rumors around ChromeOS being replaced by Android are reaching a bit too far. Instead, I think ChromeOS will likely remain in an upgraded form and simply adopt some of the underlying characteristics of Android. This will make cross-platform applications far simpler, and that sort of cohesion would absolutely extend to something like Android XR.

I don’t know that we’ll see the sort of setup I’m dreaming of with Android XR and the current versions of ChromeOS, but I do think the Android Kernel on Chromebooks down the road could easily take advantage of this collaborative type of solution. And it would be epic! If nothing else, perhaps this post will get to the right person that could go ahead and get that ball rolling for the future. As ChromeOS and Android grow far closer in the coming months, I see no reason Android XR can’t slide in and take full advantage.