What’s new in Android’s July 2026 Google System Updates [U]

The monthly “Google System Release Notes” primarily detail what’s new in Play services, Play Store, and Play system update across Android phones/tablets, Wear OS, Google/Android TV, Auto, and PC. Some features apply to end users, while others are aimed at developers. The following first-party apps comprise the “Google System”: Adaptive Connectivity Services: Search the “All apps” list in Settings and open App info for the version number Android System Intelligence: App info Android System Key Verifier: App info Android System SafetyCore: App info Android System WebView: App info Android TV Core Services Device Health Services: App info Google Partner Setup: App info Google Play Protect Service: App info Google Play services: App info Google Play Services for AR: App info Google Play Store: App info Google Play system update: Settings > About phone > Android version Private Compute Services: App info Quick Share Extension Settings Services: App info SIM Manager: App info System parental controls: App info To update, open the Settings app > tap your name at the very top for “Google services” (on Pixel) > All services tab > Privacy & security > System services. A feature appearing in the changelog does not mean it’s widely available. Some capabilities take months to fully launch. Google Play services v26.28 (2026-07-20) Account Management [Phone] This update adds support for audio permission in WebViews. [Phone] This update adds support for device manufacturers to launch storage management and subscription flows. Developer Services [TV] Add TV support for the Android Credential Manager, making it easier to use saved passwords and passkeys, including the option to use your phone for passkey authentication. Device Connectivity [Auto, Phone, TV] With this update, additional quality logging is now available. [Phone] Bug fixes for Device Connections related services. Safety & Emergency [Phone] You can now find your device IMEI on the lock screen. Wallet [Phone] You’ll return to your previous screen after you complete, cancel, or encounter an error in My Account instead of the Wallet home screen. Google Play Store v52.4 (2026-07-20) [Phone] With this update, we show natural language queries. [Phone] This update expands search suggestions and the search input box to 2 lines. [Phone] Limited mobile data usage for restoring apps in India, Nigeria, and Indonesia. [Phone] You’ll now have the option to add an app’s widget to your home screen during app installation. Android WebView v151 (2026-07-15) The HTTP Cache Quota API allows app developers to optimize and manually manage the WebView HTTP cache size. This is a migration that moves Android WebView visited links infrastructure over to partitioned-aware visited links infrastructure with no behavioral change. Improvements to security and privacy and updates for bug fixes. New developer features for Google & 3rd party app developers to support functionality related to displaying web content in their apps. Important: Some features may be experimental and available to certain users. Google Play Store v52.3 (2026-07-13) [Phone] You’ll now get an improved content layout and higher content density on large screens. [Phone] You can now identify AI-generated images in the EU by the AI label, though certain formats or older images may not support the tag yet. [Wear] With this update, the Wear details page now uses the Univision architecture instead of the legacy fragment architecture. Android AICore [PC, Phone] Changes to safety filtering for features with streaming output, improvements to model download and model management, and additional diagnostics for multimodal inferencing and API latencies. Android System Intelligence V.76 (2026-07-13) [Phone] Bug fixes and maintenance changes. Private Compute Services B.27 / C.5 (2026-07-10) [Phone] Maintenance changes. Google Play services v26.26 (2026-07-06) Account Management [Phone] With this update, you’ll now get a faster, more seamless in-app purchase experience with the upgraded native storefront for Google One. [Phone] This update adds a new API to improve the reliability of work profile setup. Developer Services [Phone] New developer features for Google and third party app developers to support Maps related processes in their apps. Device Connectivity [Phone, Wear] You can now transfer your work profile account to your watch. Location & Context [PC] You can now manage Google Location Sharing settings and compatibility for supported device types. Utilities [Auto, PC, Phone, TV, Wear] New developer features for Google and third party app developers to support Utilities related processes in their apps. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.