Google has opened a new bridge between Android and iOS.
Quick Share now works with AirDrop, giving Pixel 10 users the ability to send files directly to iPhones. The company presented the change as a step toward removing the barriers that have long made mixed phone setups feel awkward. For years, anyone switching between the two platforms had to fall back on email, messaging apps, or cloud links just to pass along a photo or a short video.
Google says the new layer that lets Quick Share talk to AirDrop has been built with strict security goals in mind. The work relied on the same safeguards Google uses in its broader platform security plan. The team began with threat modeling, moved through internal design reviews, and pushed the feature through rounds of penetration testing. After that, Google asked NetSPI to repeat the process as an independent firm. The results described the approach as stronger than what the industry usually offers and confirmed that no information leaks through the connection.
A large part of that confidence comes from Google’s choice to write the core communication logic in Rust. The language is memory safe by design, which removes entire categories of bugs that often lead to serious exploits. The code handles wireless data from another device. That part of a system is usually the one an attacker will try to break, because small flaws in parsing can trigger buffer overflows or other memory issues. Rust’s rules block those mistakes during compilation, which strengthens the feature before it ever reaches a user.
When a Pixel 10 sends a file, the Apple side has to be set to Everyone for 10 Minutes. That is the same requirement Apple uses when someone shares with a non contact. The link works directly between the devices, and nothing moves through a server. Google stresses that it does not log shared items or collect extra information. Both sides get a confirmation prompt, and the receiver stays in control of what gets accepted.
A few early users ran into trouble getting Quick Share to appear on their iPhone or iPad. CNET noted that updating the Quick Share extension through Google Play and then restarting the Pixel 10 fixed the issue. Once updated, the feature began working normally.
All of this still applies only to the Pixel 10 family. Google has not offered a timeline for wider support, though the company has said it intends to bring the feature to more devices. The move follows Google’s earlier push that convinced Apple to adopt RCS for messaging. It shows a trend in which both platforms inch toward better cooperation when enough users ask for it.
Security researchers view this step as meaningful. Google highlighted an outside perspective from Dan Boneh at Stanford, who pointed to the Rust foundation and the overall design as an example of how cross platform communication can be made safer.
The result is not a full merging of Quick Share and AirDrop, but it gives people with mixed phones a simpler option than they have ever had. Google sees it as the opening phase of broader interoperability. More refinement will come with time, and the company has expressed interest in working with Apple to bring the feature into Contacts Only mode in the future.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools with human oversight. Image: DIW-Aigen.
Read next: New Report Warns Major Chatbots Miss Teen Crisis Cues
Quick Share now works with AirDrop, giving Pixel 10 users the ability to send files directly to iPhones. The company presented the change as a step toward removing the barriers that have long made mixed phone setups feel awkward. For years, anyone switching between the two platforms had to fall back on email, messaging apps, or cloud links just to pass along a photo or a short video.
Google says the new layer that lets Quick Share talk to AirDrop has been built with strict security goals in mind. The work relied on the same safeguards Google uses in its broader platform security plan. The team began with threat modeling, moved through internal design reviews, and pushed the feature through rounds of penetration testing. After that, Google asked NetSPI to repeat the process as an independent firm. The results described the approach as stronger than what the industry usually offers and confirmed that no information leaks through the connection.
A large part of that confidence comes from Google’s choice to write the core communication logic in Rust. The language is memory safe by design, which removes entire categories of bugs that often lead to serious exploits. The code handles wireless data from another device. That part of a system is usually the one an attacker will try to break, because small flaws in parsing can trigger buffer overflows or other memory issues. Rust’s rules block those mistakes during compilation, which strengthens the feature before it ever reaches a user.
When a Pixel 10 sends a file, the Apple side has to be set to Everyone for 10 Minutes. That is the same requirement Apple uses when someone shares with a non contact. The link works directly between the devices, and nothing moves through a server. Google stresses that it does not log shared items or collect extra information. Both sides get a confirmation prompt, and the receiver stays in control of what gets accepted.
A few early users ran into trouble getting Quick Share to appear on their iPhone or iPad. CNET noted that updating the Quick Share extension through Google Play and then restarting the Pixel 10 fixed the issue. Once updated, the feature began working normally.
All of this still applies only to the Pixel 10 family. Google has not offered a timeline for wider support, though the company has said it intends to bring the feature to more devices. The move follows Google’s earlier push that convinced Apple to adopt RCS for messaging. It shows a trend in which both platforms inch toward better cooperation when enough users ask for it.
Security researchers view this step as meaningful. Google highlighted an outside perspective from Dan Boneh at Stanford, who pointed to the Rust foundation and the overall design as an example of how cross platform communication can be made safer.
The result is not a full merging of Quick Share and AirDrop, but it gives people with mixed phones a simpler option than they have ever had. Google sees it as the opening phase of broader interoperability. More refinement will come with time, and the company has expressed interest in working with Apple to bring the feature into Contacts Only mode in the future.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools with human oversight. Image: DIW-Aigen.
Read next: New Report Warns Major Chatbots Miss Teen Crisis Cues
