Joe Maring / Android Authority
TL;DR Google has released the January 2026 Android Canary build.
We’ve found evidence that this software could bring Quick Share/AirDrop integration to Pixel 9 phones.
We also spotted a few other visual changes compared to previous releases.
Google regularly offers Android Canary builds, allowing users to try new features and changes before they’re broadly released. Google launched the December 2025 Android Canary build a month ago, and it’s wasting no time in launching its first build of 2026.
The company just released the January 2026 Android Canary build, dubbed Android Canary 2601. This build has the version number ZP11.251212.007.
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We’ve already spotted evidence that this new Android Canary build could bring Quick Share/AirDrop integration to the Pixel 9 series. This comes just over a month after Google first let Pixel 10 phones send files to iPhones via Quick Share.
Android Authority contributor AssembleDebug also uncovered a couple of other changes in this Android Canary build. For starters, we now have a more rounded brightness icon in the brightness slider. Furthermore, the system settings menu now has distinct categories. The Circle to Search toggle is also accessible from this system settings menu, as opposed to tapping Settings > System > Navigation mode.
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