Communications of the ACM
Android Invasion
Ramona Rosales for Newsweek
Nobody ever imagined how quickly the Android mobile-phone platform would take off—not even Andy Rubin, the Silicon Valley engineer who created it. Five years ago Rubin was leading a startup that had just been acquired by Google and was trying to develop software that could power a smart phone. Two years ago the first Android phone hit the market and, frankly, it was a bit of a dud. But the software kept getting better, and top handset makers like HTC, Motorola, and Samsung jumped on board, rolling out dozens of Android-based devices.
What began as a trickle now has turned into a tidal wave. In August Google announced it was activating 200,000 Android phones each day. On at least one day since then, that number surged to more than 250,000, Rubin says. Android now has leapt past Apple to become the biggest smart-phone platform in the United States, the third-biggest worldwide, and by far the fastest growing.
Android is the kind of runaway smash hit that techies spend their careers dreaming about. Rubin, a 47-year-old über nerd—he has a retina scanner on the front door of his house and robotic helicopters cruise his backyard—has helped build a string of tech companies over the past two decades. But nothing he’s done so far compares to what's happening with Android. "This," he says, 'is the most fun I’ve ever had."
From Newsweek
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