Today, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Android co-founder Andy Rubin is now leaving Google. Rubin most recently headed the robotics division within the company. Last year Andy Rubin, Android’s co-founder, stepped down from his position as the leader of mobile OS and handed the reigns over to the Sundar Pichai. The timing of his departure comes just one week before Google celebrates seven years of Android and the first SDK.
According to Google, Andy’s new goal is to start an incubator for start-ups interested in building technology-hardware products. It’s not clear whether Google will be involved in any way with this new incubator, either financially or operationally.
Rubin cofounded Android in 2003 with Rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White, and Google acquired the company two years later. Google acquired Android in 2005, and Mr. Rubin helped build it into the world’s most-popular mobile operating system. Last year, Mr. Rubin left Android and began an ambitious acquisition spree that included at least eight companies, with the intent of building a robotics business inside Google. The division is focused on a diverse set of areas surrounding manufacturing and logistics. James Kuffner, who works in Google’s robotics group, will take over Rubin’s position at the top.
Last week, it was reported that Google was reorganizing its leadership, with Larry Page stepping back a bit and handing over the reins of core Google Products to senior vice president Sundar Pichai. Pichai is already heading Android, Chrome, and Apps at Google.
Rubin’s background originally was in the hardware. Before Google, Rubin worked at Apple, and then co-founded the device maker Danger, but he left a half decade before it was acquired by Microsoft. He then went on to co-found Android with Rich Miner in 2003.
Google launched the first phone running Android in 2008. Since then, Android has taken a dominating market share over other smartphone operating systems across the world. Some of the most popular new smartphone manufacturers run modified versions of Android.
Google, too, has launched its line of Google-branded Android phones and tablets under the company’s Nexus project. Google selects specific manufacturers to develop the phones, which don’t include the customized versions of the operating systems.
