Pixel’s new welcome screen looks awfully similar to an iPhone’s

Google had a big day yesterday. In addition to launching the Pixel 10 series, the company released Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 and a new release of Android Canary. We’re digging through all the new hardware and software to find out what’s new, and we’ve spotted one new addition to Android 16 QPR2 Beta that is straight up lifted from Apple.

You’ll see the new Welcome screen when you install Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 afresh on a Pixel (or wipe your data). Here’s what the new Welcome screen on Pixels looks like:

As you can see in the new Welcome screen, the text “Hello” cycles through different languages. The Emergency call button has been moved to the top left, whereas the Accessibility button has been moved to the bottom left. The language selector has also been removed from this screen, but don’t fret — you can select the system language in the next screen.

For reference, this is what the previous Welcome screen looks like on Pixels before the Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 update:

It’s a strange change for Google, since the previous Welcome screen had a bit more Pixel brand recall. If the new Welcome screen looks familiar to you, you only need to look at any Apple iPhone to see where Google got its inspiration from:

Since the Pixel 9 series, Google has copied bits and pieces from the iPhone. First impressions matter, so it’s unsurprising that Google is also copying the “Hello” welcome screen to make iPhone users feel more at home on their new Pixel.

Note that Android OEMs can and do already customize the welcome screen on their phones. So while this change won’t directly make its way to other Android devices outside of Pixel, the OEM can always independently copy Apple’s “Hello” welcome screen to give us the same experience. As the saying (not from Oscar Wilde) goes, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.”