Google shuts down Now Launcher after 10 years

Popular tech giant Google will discontinue its Now Launcher in April 2023, putting a complete end to the service after a 10-year run. The company introduced the launcher with the Android smartphone Nexus 5 back in 2012 before it was released for other phones with Android 4.1. The move isn’t surprising, considering that Now Launcher took its first blow in 2017 when the company unpublished it from the Play Store.

While existing users continued to receive updates via the Google app, new downloads were forbidden.

Now, the company has decided to stop supporting the launcher entirely. To notify users, an alert has been set up on the native app’s beta version 14.14, which reads:

“Google Now Launcher will stop working in April. To change your launcher, go to Settings, or install a new launcher from the Play Store”

Users can choose to do nothing, in which case they will be switched to the device’s default launcher.

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Why did Google remove support for Now Launcher?

Now Launcher was introduced to offer access to Now's benefits across different mobile platforms. However, alongside removing the launcher from the Play Store, the company debuted the Search Launcher Services library in 2017, allowing all OEMs to add native access to Now's features from their launchers.

Naturally, the Search Launcher Services library diminished the purpose of a dedicated Now launcher, which users needed to download separately from the Play Store.

However, the removal of Now Launcher will not affect many users as most modern Android phones feature curated launchers. Users can simply left-swipe from the home screen to access Google Now's functionalities. Similarly, Pixel phones have their own launcher. One can also download third-party launchers like Nova, Nothing, and Niagara for additional features and benefits.

In addition to Now Launcher, the company is also set to shut down two other services - Grasshopper and Currents - in 2023.

Launched in 2017, Grasshopper is an online learning application for those who want to learn coding from scratch. As per the notification, the platform will be sunsetted on June 15, 2023.

Currents, on the other hand, is a social media platform designed for workaholics and team players. It was introduced as a replacement for Google+ for G-Suite in 2019. As per the announcement, the tech giant will start “winding down” Currents in 2023 and help users move to Spaces in the long run.