Google working on new operating system to power IoT: reports

Google is said to be working on a new operating system named Fuchsia that, according to speculation, would be related to Internet of Things (IoT).

"The important thing is that this could be Google's bid to supply the OS that runs Internet of Things-type systems," said Dan Olds, an analyst with OrionX, a technology analyst firm, Computer World  reported.

"This could be an OS to run on sensors that, for example, check on fertilizer levels in farmers' fields or voice recognition features for fitness products. The array of possibilities in these devices is endless and they all need some sort of operating system."

Speculation intensified late last week and focused on whether the search company was looking to either add to its OS family of Android and Chrome or to begin to replace them.

In a report, Android Police drew attention to  Google's extremely cryptic and basic description of Fuchsia on the project's GitHub page. The report said the new operating system's kernel, called Magenta, was designed to be used on everything from embedded devices to laptops.

What was known so far was that Fuchsia, an open source project seemed to be not related to either Android or Chrome, despite speculation that it could be developed to replace them.

According to commentators, Fuchsia's code offered a few clues, for instance, the OS was built on Magenta, a "medium-sized microkernel" that was itself based on a project called LittleKernel, designed for use in embedded systems (computers that had a specialised function and often did not need an actual operating system, like the software in a digital watch).

Also both the developers listed on Fuchsia's GitHub page, Christopher Anderson and Brian Swetland are experts in embedded systems.

The Magenta kernel could do a lot more than just power a router and according to Google's own documentation, the software "targets modern phones and modern personal computers" that use "fast processors" and "non-trivial amounts of RAM."