Although Android already has a sandboxed Linux terminal available, this Google model will be geared toward developers.

This is a pretty significant update for how Android apps are built, tested, and rolled out to the Play Store. Android Studio Narwhal (2025.2.1) has deep integration with Gemini 2.5 Pro models.

The new Linux Terminal app plays a big role in Google's future plans to turn Android into a desktop platform. Here's how.