South Korea Sees Limited Impact From New U.S. Tariffs on Advanced AI Chips 
China Considers New Rules to Limit Purchases of Foreign AI Chips Amid Growing Demand 
TSMC Set to Post Record Q4 Profit as AI Chip Demand Accelerates 
Tesla Revives Dojo Supercomputer Project With AI5 Chip at the Core 
Micron to Buy Powerchip Fab for $1.8 Billion, Shares Surge Nearly 10% 
Trump Pushes Tech Giants to Absorb AI Data Center Power Costs, Citing Microsoft Changes 
Google Seeks Delay on Data-Sharing Order as It Appeals Landmark Antitrust Ruling 
TSMC Shares Hit Record High as AI Chip Demand Fuels Strong Q4 Earnings 
Starlink Internet Remains Active in Iran Despite Nationwide Blackout 
AFT Leaves X Over AI-Generated Images of Minors 
China Halts Shipments of Nvidia H200 AI Chips, Forcing Suppliers to Pause Production 
U.S. Lawmakers Raise Alarm Over Trump Approval of Nvidia AI Chip Sales to China 
Zhipu AI Launches GLM-Image Model Trained on Huawei Chips, Boosting China’s AI Self-Reliance Drive 
Microsoft Strikes Landmark Soil Carbon Credit Deal With Indigo Carbon to Boost Carbon-Negative Goal 
U.S.–Taiwan Trade Deal Spurs $500 Billion Semiconductor Investment in America 
Google has released the Android 12 developer preview 3 in late April, and that means the first public beta of the operating system update is next to launch. While a specific date is not yet known, there are speculations that it could be one of the major announcements during the upcoming Google I/O conference.
Android 12 first public beta could launch soon
Every year, Google releases a timeline of new Android versions’ preview stages before its full version goes live. For Android 12, Google has been able to keep up with the schedule after releasing developer preview 3 in late April.
The same timeline indicates that beta 1 will be released in May, which will be available to early adopters. CNET suggests the next stage of testing could be announced during the Google I/O keynote address. The three-day virtual and free-for-all conference kicks off on May 18.
Per the official Google I/O 2021 schedule, the two-hour keynote address for everyone will be the first order of business of the conference. A 45-minute developer-focused keynote will follow, and then new Android features will be presented.
Android 12 beta 1: Who can access it?
While the Android 12 beta 1 is essentially an early public version of the OS update, it still requires being enrolled in the Android Beta program. Because there are plenty of Android-powered devices in the market, it can be expected that the availability of the beta will be deployed OTA to select eligible devices only.
For now, though, the enrollment to Android Beta is still closed. If predictions were right and Google launches Android 12 beta 1 on May 18, the program’s official page could be updated to accommodate new signups.
However, the general public could still benefit from the release of Android 12 beta 1 because its mere launch is likely to reveal more features and changes planned for this year. After this phase, a new beta version is planned to launch every month through August. Google is not yet putting a release window for the final release of the update, but it is possible to arrive in the fall like in previous years.
Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash
