Discussion
Android CLI: Build Android apps 3x faster using any agent
kdhaskjdhadjk: Man, we are really entering into the next level of hell with this LLM business. I predict a boom in the hacking industry as people get thoroughly owned by all the resulting giant security flaws in the public facing dumpster fires people are gleefully shoving out the door.Just wait until there are entire classes of vulnerabilities related to LLM usage, such as malignant patterns resulting from flaws in the training data or algorithms which result in generating predictably bad code at a statistically significant rate that can be known and exploited. In other words, the LLM subtly adds in the security flaws by accident. Or by "accident."Some people in the future are going to make big bucks cleaning up all this garbage. Just think of the situation now when trying to migrate some company off an ancient tech stack that is core to its business, and all the software and hardware is obsolete and undocumented--except now it'll also be autogenerated by a 2026 LLM. LOL! It'll be highly paid for a reason, because the job is a waking nightmare. Real soul destroying stuff.
vlapec: That probably depends on how good 2026-era LLMs already are. But I hope you’re right, and that pre-AI devs will still make a real difference.
rafram: What does this have to do with the Android CLI?
kdhaskjdhadjk: Do I need to spell it out for you?
OutOfHere: But can I publish an app without having to share my ID?
Flavius: Absolutely not. That would be crazy.
AnimalMuppet: Since rafram is not the only one confused, yes, you really do.
antirez: Let's see if even mid/big companies with tons of resources, with AI and the right tooling will continue to write webview-apps or, even worse, use some kind of multi target wrapper.
user2722: Agents will allow human programmers to get what they've been begging for decades now: proper requirements and flexible, logical, tooling.
risyachka: The tooling in 2026 is so easy you can do almost anything without AI very very quickly.
Evidlo: Now please let us install the apps just as easily
stronglikedan: downloading an APK and opening it is already about as easy as it gets. the only thing easier would be for someone else to do it for you
throwaway81523: You're forgetting the installation ("sideloading", what everyone else calls installation) restrictions they are about to deploy. It will be a significant hassle to install anything without Google's approval. Many F-droid apps are showing warning notices about this upcoming change.
whstl: I wish the same thing existed for Apple.Everything I do for macOS/iOS is already without Xcode but it's a pain in the ass to keep up with changes, and there are things I haven't figured out yet (like AUv3).
rtpg: this has been my sort of big tent alignment with AI people. If I'm getting good CLI tooling that _actually works_ (or fixes to existing ones that have been busted forever) then I'm pretty happy.Things that make systems more understandable to the LLMs ... usually make things more understandable for humans as well. Usually.The biggest issue I've found is that vibed up tooling tends to be pretty bad at having the right kind of "sense" for what makes good CLI UX. So you still have awkward argument structures or naming. Better than nothing though
sunaookami: >Google collects usage data for the Android CLI, such as commands, sub-commands, and flags used. This data does not include custom parameters or identifiable information. This information helps improve the tool and is collected in accordance with Google's Privacy Policy.>https://policies.google.com/privacy>Disable Android CLI metrics collection by using the --no-metrics flag.No thanks, is there no env variable for this? Doesn't Google have enough data already?
gowld: Android CLI can write a tool that wraps android-cli and automatically passes the flag based on an env variable.How would Google have enough data about a brand new product without collecting that data?
tredre3: > How would Google have enough data about a brand new product without collecting that data?They wouldn't. But on the other hand, they probably have a large amount of in-house Android app developers on whom they can conduct such metrics collection. I wouldn't expect outsiders to have vastly different workflows, because when you get out of the happy path with Android all you get is pain.
nout: Zapstore or Obtanium...
jadbox: I've been thinking the same thing lately. It's sorta frustrating that it required bots to force tech companies to make clean simple cli driven development workflows.
qingcharles: It's wild that it took AI to get half the companies on the planet to actually add reasonably priced APIs to their products so I don't have to puppeteer every damn thing with a flakey harness.
binkHN: It's not just your ID; it's your address, phone number, and the list goes on.
panzi: `alias android-cli='android-cli --no-metrics'`
agentifysh: Flutter CLI is what we really need but this is a welcome addition.
bartekpacia: It exists already. Wdym?
mridulmalpani: How can I use this official android skill with Claude code?Is there any step by step process or guidance on it?
cbhl: Looks like the docs start here: https://developer.android.com/tools/agents/android-skills#us...There's a link to a repo or you can use the CLI tool to init the skills
SJMG: [delayed]
whattheheckheck: Any textbooks or resources on getting better at naming things?The Programmers Brain book was my go to
hemc4: Wow. Thanks for this update. It streamlined a lot of tasks.Apart from this, next step will be to add suport for building android apps on the android phones itself. No desktop needed.Building on the laptop with agents and installing the build in the phone and testing doea not seem AI native. If everything can run on my android phone, development cycle will speed up.
winrid: Catching up to Flutter.
stavros: The Design of Everyday Things.
jadar: This is great. We also need a tool to expose source jars to agents so they don’t need to compress. There’s a lot of Compose overloads that Claude just guesses at. I built something internally but it needs polish and Claude really struggled with the deep Gradle integration.
anabis: The install command shown for Windows is 404.`curl -fsSL https://dl.google.com/android/cli/latest/windows_x86_64/inst... | bash`The URL shown for individual OSs work, but the script errors for me.`curl.exe -fsSL https://dl.google.com/android/cli/latest/windows_x86_64/inst... -o "%TEMP%\i.cmd" && "%TEMP%\i.cmd"`I manually downloaded the exe, but it say socket error. vibe coding is going strong!
stavros: "This APK cannot be scanned and its safety cannot be verified. Learn more/go back" and "learn more" has a link that looks like nothing but is actually a button to actually install the app.I can think of some easier things, for example popping up a dialog, pressing "install" and having my all actually be installed after that.
iririririr: > Your agents perform best when they have a lightweight, programmatic interface to interact with the Android SDK and development environment.F you google. Me too. Why didn't we get a sane way to build android apps before you had to please chatbots?
bitpush: Damned if you do. Damned if you dont.
stavros: Damned if you don't, damned if you do fifteen years later for an entirely different reason.
rvillberg: This is a good step forward, but keep in mind the claimed gains are about "project and environment setup", not the tasks you deal with on a daily basis in an existing project.
anabis: Taking screenshots, optionally with component borders highlighted, and operating the UI with element names like "button1" instead of tap 200,30 looks useful. If I could get it to work.
firemelt: flutter have this already?
winrid: I meant in terms of development speed with agents.
diego_sandoval: AFAIK, Flutter has had a good, capable CLI since the beggining. You've never needed to install Android Studio to use Flutter.
smalltorch: You actually can right now on termux.
xstas1: you already could! just install Termux, npm install your favourite agent harness (pi for one has explicit Termux support, but its AGENTS.md works just fine with Claude Code for example - https://github.com/badlogic/pi-mono/blob/main/packages/codin...), and say you want an android app. It problem solves for a bit, then spits out an apk out to your Downloads folder.
ramses0: "How to be Unix-y in Eleventy Billion Steps"http://www.robertames.com/blog.cgi/entries/the-unix-way-comm...TLDR: standard list of long options <https://www.gnu.org/prep/standards/standards.html#Option-Tab...> and short options from -a to -z <http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/taoup/html/ch10s05.html>.
EdwardDiego: You could export BASH_ENV to have Bash processes source a given file at startup.Zsh has .zshenv, and Fish just has config.fish for everything with the ability to guard certain things within it to login only or non-interactive only.
xstas1: Also coding agents will happily compile android applications (of maximum complexity) via Github Actions where you can just pick them up with Obtainium. No PC needed
hemc4: Let me try this. Last year this was a dream. Can't belive we are so close to automate all of this.My major issue last time was providing the feedback to the agent by running the apk on phone i.e, pass the debug log from the apk back to agent so it can iterate on it without me providing any input.
figmert: Create a wrapping binary instead mkdir -p ~/.local/bin printf '#!/usr/bin/env sh\nexec android-cli --no-metrics "$@"' > ~/.local/bin/android-cli echo 'PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshenv
kube-system: Good, it shouldn't be two clicks for elderly people to install trojans on their phone that then drain their bank account. There should be some explicit confirmation that the user knows what they are doing and they are not being scammed. It is long overdue.
kube-system: The conclusion I drew from that book is that I shouldn't be naming things.
throwa356262: Goggles Android tooling has been like this forever, nothing to do with AI.
LtWorf: It is 1 click because the malware is on the play store already!
kube-system: Both are problematic.
DeathArrow: Can we have a web development CLI with web development skills?
phyzix5761: Its like major cities repairing their roads to incentivize autonomous vehicles to operate there. Win win for everyone.
TeMPOraL: You're saying it should look like those damned browser certificate failure sites, with option to open the damn site hidden under button that looks like an unassuming link?
noosphr: Apart from pedestrians.
phyzix5761: It never made sense to me why cars and pedestrians need to share the same spaces. Why can't we have more efficient walking routes that are away from cars?
fragmede: ask the agent to run adb log so it can read it for itself
anabis: I got a workaround a la GH Copilot:<pre>> android skills listPicked up JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS: -Djava.net.useSystemProxies=true</pre>
noosphr: Because cars took over the streets from pedestrians between 1900 and 1930 and no one noticed.Hopefully when petrol hits $10 a gallon in the next few months more of the world will think about banning cars from high density areas.
wiseowise: Flutter quality like tooling, I assume.
wiseowise: Android Studio on its deathbed. Just release VSCode plugin and kill it for good, it has been a buggy, slow mess for the last 3 years or so.
barrkel: Do you still use IDEs?I haven't used an IDE since December.
codebolt: Debugging and local testing is the main remaining use case of IDEs. Especially so for mobile apps where you need to manage one or more emulators.
user_7832: > Good, it shouldn't be two clicks for elderly people to install trojans on their phone that then drain their bank account.And what makes you think that most scams involve fancy zero days/CVEs/hijacking the OS, and not simple social engineering?You do not require a malicious apk to receive 2FA codes, or for the gullible user to read them aloud to the scammer. All phones come with an SMS and phone app.You do not require a malicious apk to send transactions in banking apps (eg tricking people selling their product to send the money.)You do not require a malicious apk to engage in a pig butchering scam, or to buy gift cards.> There should be some explicit confirmation that the user knows what they are doing and they are not being scammed. It is long overdue.I agree. Social engineering counters should have awareness raised by the governments. But blocking 3rd party apps for this is like using a cannon to shoot a mosquito. I'm not sure it makes the slightest of sense.
miroljub: I must say I'm quite disappointed.I expected something useful for application development. All it offers is some wrapper around the basic Android setup command that LLMs are already good at. What, initial empty project creation now takes 5 minutes instead of 10? Big deal, who cares?I had another hope awakening that at least skills might be useful. But except for a few migration recipes, there's nothing of value for day to day Android development.Facit: I'll skip installing another Google app whose only purpose is more spying on me and keep developing Android apps the way I already do.TLDR: Nothing to see here. Move on.
wiseowise: Google has been neglecting Android for years with subpar tooling and ridiculous development practices.
cageface: If you think Android tooling is subpar wait until you try iOS.
csomar: I honestly have no idea what is going on. Lots of broken things in what's supposed to be front products for Google and other "high name" brands. I don't get it: Where is everybody? Is there no one there? Are these companies really dead inside?
laxisOp: What is obtainium.
oblio: What tooling?
oblio: Yes, we can do that by banning leisure cars trips from all dense areas.What's that you say? Drivers are a major and rich political force and they will block such decisions?
yorwba: I'm pretty sure this will just call itself in a loop. You need to use the absolute path to the wrapped binary to distinguish it from the wrapper.
oblio: Also it's not a binary :-)
Natfan: great! now let me know when your official app store transparently alerts users when an app they were using was sold to a third-party adtech surveillance company, please :)
wiseowise: Not on Android, where debugger works once in a blue moon.
wiseowise: Apple deliberately makes them shitty, big difference.
Ciantic: `android docs` is the superpower we need for everything. NPM / pnpm should have similar `npm docs` that would allow humans and agents to search for type-signatures and JSDocs.It is so annoying that each agent has its own ideas where it tries to get the docs, usually by blindly grepping.
risyachka: Frontend, backend, workflow engines, payments, idk all of it.Like you can make a cross-platform react native app with expo in a day without any AI (a proper app, not a boilerplate). Same with many web apps.Shadcn with themes and components, tailwind, temporal workflows, etc etc. The complexity of making apps was solved years ago.
hansmayer: > 3x fasterBecause the real bottleneck is really the velocity of development, right next to keeping the codebase small - right guys?
overfeed: Code-generation velocity, and the absolute number of lines churned are 2 metrics AI tools can irrefutably benchmaxx, so the vendors highlight them.
hansmayer: Oh absolutely - the old saying about only having a hammer and seeing each problem as a nail applies.On the positive side, they've decided to come down from "superintelligence", "superchanging workflows" and other bullshit to the actual feature - 3x speed of text generation. Which is not quite the problem that needed to be solved in software engineering, but as you said yourself...
netdevphoenix: If you think Android Studio has been a bug in the last 3 years, you haven't used it back in the days of Android Studio Beta. It has come a long way.
netdevphoenix: > Everything I do for macOS/iOS is already without XcodeDoesn't Xcode allow you to plug in agents like VS Code does?
embedding-shape: Ah, ok, no worries then, here I thought they didn't care about engineering quality or tooling that works just recently, but turns out they never did! Thanks :)
intuxikated: An android app that tracks releases to install the latest versions of apps directly from github.
whstl: I don't know, I don't use/want to use Xcode.What I'm interested is in the CLI tool for my own use, not necessarily for agents.
DaSHacka: The H1B Visa and its consequences
1313ed01: CLI in a product name now means LLM agent TUI specifically and not just, as I would have expected, any kind of Command Line Interface? And usually there is barely a CLI included at all and you are expected to mostly launch the full TUI with its own embedded readline-loop rather that use the CLI?
aquariusDue: Also it works with private repos too if you provide a personal access token (fine-grained) in the Obtainium app settings. Just make sure to "release" (on the Releases tab) the .apk file on the GitHub repo and tag it latest.I use 'just' (command runner) and the 'gh' CLI to automate this: # Build and publish a GitHub release release: apk VERSION="v$(date +'%Y.%m.%d')-$(git rev-parse --short HEAD)"; \ APK="build/app/outputs/flutter-apk/app-release.apk"; \ REPO="$(git config --get remote.origin.url | sed -E 's#.*github.com[:/](.*)\.git#\1#')"; \ echo "Releasing $VERSION to $REPO"; \ git tag "$VERSION" 2>/dev/null || true; \ git push origin "$VERSION"; \ gh release create "$VERSION" "$APK" \ --repo "$REPO" \ --title "$VERSION" \ --notes "Automated release for $VERSION" \ || gh release upload "$VERSION" "$APK" --repo "$REPO" --clobber
wiseowise: Not even close. Flutter has been engineered from the ground up with excellent tooling, unlike Android’s mess of organically evolved crap held together by a duct tape.
aquariusDue: Yeah, I've been using Flutter since December last year and I'm really amazed how good the developer experience is. I kinda regret not picking it up sooner but from what I understand now's a great time too with the roadmap they've planned for this year (videos on YouTube explaining Flutter concepts and decoupling Material and Cupertino).You can even make 2D games with Flutter with the help of Flame[0] but be wary that pixel art style games are a bit of a hassle due to some bugs in Flutter itself. Otherwise Flutter is a joy to use for its intended purpose: cross-platform apps.[0] https://flame-engine.org/
jezzamon: This is a CLI, the example shows the Gemini TUI using it
