Samsung and Google partner to bring ARCore platform to Samsung devices beyond the Galaxy S8
Nick Statt / The Verge :
Context & Ripple Effects
When Google launched the ARCore preview in August 2017, chasing Apple's ARKit, it certified just two phones: the Pixel and Samsung's Galaxy S8. Samsung had already signaled willingness to host Google platforms by bringing Daydream VR support to the S8 that summer.
This partnership is the next step in that sequence: instead of certifying devices one at a time, Google and Samsung are agreeing to extend ARCore across Samsung's lineup broadly — a distribution deal that matters because Samsung is the largest slice of the Android hardware base ARCore needs to compete with iOS.
First-order effects
- Android developers building AR apps get a far larger certified install base than the two-phone preview allowed, with Samsung's non-S8 devices gaining ARCore support through the partnership rather than case-by-case approval.
Second-order effects
- The arrangement sets up Samsung's next flagship cycle: when the Galaxy S9 and S9+ ship, they arrive into an ecosystem where ARCore support is expected, which Google formally delivered in May 2018.
- Other Android OEMs face pressure to strike similar arrangements or risk their flagships being excluded from the AR app wave, since developers prioritize platforms with certified reach.
Third-order effects
- By February 2018 ARCore exited preview covering 13 phone models and a claimed 100M devices, suggesting the one-off Samsung deal generalizes into a standing certification pipeline — Android AR shifting from flagship exclusivity toward baseline platform availability in the race against Apple's ARKit.
The trend: Mobile AR is consolidating around two platform gatekeepers, with Google converting per-device certifications like this Samsung partnership into broad Android coverage to match Apple's ARKit install base.