Will Google’s switch to APKs affect Huawei? Here is what he says.

Google announced a fundamental change to Android a few weeks ago by revealing that the Android App Bundles (AAB) would succeed the APK format. All new apps submitted to the Play Store starting in August will have to use the new format, although existing apps can continue to use APKs for now.

What does this mean for Huawei and its Harmony OS platform? After all, Harmony OS supports APKs to run Android apps. Well, Huawei executive Wang Chenglu told the state affiliate World time output that the new format would not affect the user experience of Harmony OS or hamper development.

It is not clear whether Huawei’s Harmony OS and HMS / Android platforms support Android app bundles, although the documentation seems to suggest that the app gallery does support the format. We have asked Huawei to clarify the support and will update the article if / when the company responds to us. We hope the Chinese brand will work on support if AABs aren’t already compatible, as we might see a bigger app gap between Huawei and Google as more apps are released.

Still, it looks like the new format might make life a bit more difficult for other app stores and third-party repositories as well. Developers will need to manually export their app bundles as an APK if they want their app to appear on alternative stores. This is a double-edged sword, as developers have more control over where their app appears, but it introduces a bit of friction if you want to support more than the Play Store.