ANDROIDXR INITIATIVE

Unlocking the Potential of AndroidXR Wearables in the Enterprise

AREA members have launched an initiative to bridge the gap between AndroidXR’s current capabilities and enterprise requirements

AREA Android XR
As AndroidXR OS emerges as a dedicated platform for immersive and wearable devices, enterprises are increasingly exploring its promise to power the next generation of extended reality (XR) experiences. Yet despite this growing interest, the path to scalable deployment is far from straightforward.

AREA members have identified a number of persistent challenges that inhibit adoption of Android-based XR—particularly wearables—across complex enterprise environments. These issues span device fragmentation, security, integration with IT infrastructure, and a lack of enterprise-grade management and support tools.

The AREA Initiative

Recognizing the critical role AndroidXR is expected to play in the enterprise XR ecosystem, AREA convened a dedicated working group and initiated a multi-phase exploration of AndroidXR device deployment barriers.

This initiative brings together member organizations, solution providers, and ecosystem stakeholders to document real-world concerns, prioritize issues, and propose actionable solutions. The group’s findings reflect the collective insights and experiences of enterprise IT professionals, XR strategists, and developers working to bridge the gap between AndroidXR’s current capabilities and enterprise requirements.

The list below presents the consolidated challenges faced when deploying Android-based wearable devices in enterprise settings. These insights are drawn from workshops, working group discussions, and direct input from AREA member organizations.

They form the foundation for our next steps—creating frameworks, tools, and partnerships to support secure, scalable, and manageable AndroidXR adoption. We invite you to explore these challenges and join the ongoing conversation to shape the future of AndroidXR in enterprise.

12 Barriers to Adoption for Android XR OS Devices in the Enterprise

The lack of a single, unified update process for Android devices leads to delays in receiving security patches and feature updates.
Android’s permissive app installation model, which allows sideloading from outside the Google Play Store, increases the risk of malware and other security threats.
Supporting multiple Android versions and patch levels increases the cost and complexity of deploying Android wearables in an enterprise environment.
The fragmentation of Android wearable devices—due to variations in manufacturer hardware capabilities and system behaviours—makes it difficult to establish a consistent deployment strategy, complicating support, maintenance, and increases the risk of vendor lock-in.
The lack of a unified, top-down Mobile Device Management (MDM) framework makes it difficult to manage Android wearable devices at scale.
Deploying Android-based wearables at scale requires significant IT resources to configure, monitor, and maintain security policies.
Android wearable devices often lack seamless integration with enterprise IAM solutions (e.g., Active Directory, SAML, OAuth), making authentication, user identity management, and role-based access control more difficult.
Ensuring that Android wearable devices meet enterprise security and compliance requirements (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) is complex and challenging.
The absence of standardized security certifications (e.g., FIPS 140-2, SOC 2, ISO 27001) in Android wearable devices makes it difficult to ensure compliance with internal security policies and external regulations.
Hardware and performance limitations, such as processing power, RAM, and battery life, impact the ability of Android wearables to support enterprise applications like AR, AI analytics, or real-time communication.
The lack of a robust developer ecosystem for enterprise applications forces organizations to invest in custom development or rely on third-party developers.
Limited availability of IT security resources, combined with a lack of enterprise prioritization for XR, results in no clear technical or business drivers to conduct the necessary analysis.