Google used The Android Show: XR Edition to outline the next phase of its Android XR strategy, confirming new features for the Samsung Galaxy XR headset and offering an early look at upcoming devices from partners. The updates show how Google wants to broaden XR beyond a single headset and prepare for a mix of lightweight AI glasses, immersive wearables and hybrid systems like XReal’s Project Aura.
The Galaxy XR headset is receiving three new features: PC Connect, Travel mode and Likeness.
PC Connect links a Windows PC to the headset, allowing users to bring their desktop or individual windows into the XR space and place them alongside native apps. The feature is designed to expand productivity and gaming, especially for users who want a wider workspace than a laptop screen. PC Connect is rolling out in beta.
Travel mode stabilises the headset’s view, which helps when using the device on flights or in other situations with motion. The idea is to let users watch content or work with multiple windows without discomfort in cramped environments.
Likeness is Google’s take on a real-time digital avatar. Users can create a realistic representation of their face that mirrors expressions, mouth movements and gestures during video calls. The feature aims to keep communication personal even when the user’s face is obscured by the headset. Likeness enters beta today.
These features continue Google’s broader push to integrate AI, spatial computing and cross-device workflows into Android XR.
The company also detailed its work with Samsung, Gentle Monster and Warby Parker on AI glasses. Two models are planned. The first focuses on screen-free assistance using microphones, speakers and cameras to let users interact with Gemini and take photos. The second adds an in-lens display that can show information such as navigation prompts or translation captions. The first glasses are expected next year.
Google then confirmed that Android XR will support wired XR glasses, a category aimed at users who want immersive, large-canvas visuals without a full headset. The company showcased Project Aura from XReal, which features optical see-through lenses and a 70-degree field of view. Project Aura allows AR-based digital windows to appear over the real world, creating a large private workspace suitable for productivity or entertainment. Google highlighted everyday use cases, such as following recipe videos or step-by-step guides, while keeping awareness of the physical environment. Project Aura is scheduled for launch next year.
On the developer side, Google released Developer Preview 3 of the Android XR SDK. The update opens development for AI glasses, offering APIs for augmented assistance and early examples from partners like Uber and GetYourGuide. It also adds tools for richer spatial experiences on headsets and wired XR glasses.
Shahram Izadi, VP and GM of XR at Google, said the goal is to deliver devices that fit naturally into users’ daily routines. He highlighted the need for varied form factors that balance comfort, immersion and style, and stressed that hardware is only the starting point for the next wave of XR experiences.
The Galaxy XR launched in October 2025 as the first commercial headset built on Google’s revived XR platform, placing it in direct competition with Meta’s Quest line and Apple’s Vision Pro. The new features bring the headset closer to offering a full cross-device workflow, which has become a key differentiator in the premium XR segment. PC Connect also mirrors trends in portable PCs and handheld gaming, where users increasingly expect seamless transitions between screens.
Meanwhile, the focus on AI glasses reflects Google’s push to deliver lighter, more wearable hardware as part of its Gemini-integrated ecosystem. With multiple partners involved, the company appears to be positioning Android XR as an open alternative to vertically integrated systems from Apple and Meta.
As the ecosystem expands, support from developers will be critical. The new SDK preview aims to give app makers the tools to design spatial interfaces that work across headsets, glasses and hybrid devices like Project Aura.
The announcements at The Android Show signal Google’s attempt to define the next phase of XR as a mix of AI, spatial interfaces and multimodal hardware, with the Galaxy XR, upcoming AI glasses and XREAL’s Project Aura forming the first wave of that strategy.
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