The Android Runtime (ART) is like the engine of the Android system. It's the thing that makes all the apps and most of the system stuff work on your phone. It's been getting better with updates from Google, like the ones since Android 12.
Just think of ART as the magic that takes the code of apps (whether they're written in Java or Kotlin) and turns it into something your phone can understand and run. And when ART gets better, your apps start faster, run smoother, use up less memory, and even get safer from bugs and bad stuff.
The latest update, ART 13, makes apps start up about 30% faster on some devices. It's like your phone's getting a little turbo boost. And the good thing is this magic happens on all kinds of Android devices, not just certain ones.
When Google wants to make ART better, they do a bunch of tests. They try out more than 18 million apps to make sure everything works right. They also see how fast apps start, how well they run, and how much memory they use on all sorts of Android devices. And after all these tests, they slowly let the new stuff spread to everyone's phones.
Google also wants the people who make apps to have an easier time. So, they make sure every update makes things better for them too. They've made the way apps are made even better with ART 13, and it's super easy for them to use the new stuff. It's like giving them cooler tools to build cooler things.
Now, there's an even newer update, ART 14, on the way. It's going to make apps run even better and take up less space on your phone. And it's bringing along a friend, OpenJDK 17, which helps make things smoother. And you know what's awesome?
These updates work on Android 12 and newer versions. Google says even Android Go phones will get these updates really soon. So, everyone gets to have a better phone experience.
Sources: android-developers.googleblog.com
