Google has hinted that it will reveal a new direction for its material design language with Android 16.
The company has just released the session list for the upcoming Google I/O 2025 event, which will take place on Tuesday 20 May and Wednesday 21 May.
Perhaps the most exciting piece to come from this somewhat dry list is the pre-announcement of a new design language for Google’s software in the coming years: material 3 Expressive.
What do we know about material 3 Expressive?
Of course Google does not spill anything important on its new design language (or should that be ‘evolution’?), Apart from his name, which has appeared in Google Code in recent weeks.
What it does mention in the short overview of Google I/O session is that “the future of the UX design of Google” will represent with a “new emotional design patterns to stimulate involvement, usability and desire for your product” -a reminder that Google I/O is really aimed at developers above everything.
Google promises to go through its new guidelines for Material 3 Expressive, as well as sharing design files and Alfa code during the event.
Last month we learned that Google had re -changed its settings -app for Android 16 with a new ‘expressive’ design, that switching switches appears to be submitted with checks and crosses, settings that are placed in different cards, arrow icons for subpages and a repositioned header that reflects more items in an eye storage.
Material 3 Expressive: What’s in a name?
So what can we deduce from the expressive name of the material 3? It suggests that for one thing this is not a completely new version of Google’s design language.
The original material design emerged in 2014, in contrast to Apple’s Chintzy iOS -Choiceorphism (that mimics real materials) with a flatter, more minimalist design.
Then Material Design 2 came in 2018, which offered more adjustment options for manufacturers and a new adapted font in Google Sans.
Material design 3 (AKA Material U) followed in 2021 with the Google Pixel 6, so that we are in the era that we are now in. This brought smooth animations, chunkier buttons and those beautiful adapted onion themes.
Google who calls his latest design language material 3 Expressive suggests that we are not yet completely ready for material design 4. Material design 3.5 then?