Google Executive Wants to Help Apple Make Texts Between Android and iPhone Users More Secure

A Google executive is extending an open hand to help Apple adopt RCS, a new communication protocol called Rich Communication Services to iPhone and iPad, that would replace standard SMS and offer improved cross-platform messaging capabilities.

General Apps Messages
In a tweet, Hiroshi Lockheimer, Google's senior vice president of Android, said that "group chats don't need to break this way," referring to a sub-tweet about the inconvenience Android and ‌iPhone‌ users have in communicating via messages. Alluding to the ‌RCS‌ protocol, Lockheimer goes on to state there is a "Really Clear Solution" and that he is offering an "open invitation to the folks who can make this right," with the "folks" in question being a reference to Apple.

Google has been rolling out ‌RCS‌ for the past several years, and in July, all three major carriers in the U.S. pledged to adopt RCS, which, compared to SMS, offers support for higher quality photos and videos, audio messages, improved security, and better group chats.

With ‌RCS‌, Android to Android messaging communication will become fully end-to-end encrypted. In contrast, Android to ‌iPhone‌ communication often referred to as the "green bubble," will be less secure due to Apple's unwillingness to adopt ‌RCS‌.

Popular Stories

Aston Martin CarPlay Ultra Screen

Apple's CarPlay Ultra to Expand to These Vehicle Brands Later This Year

Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon. In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. In his Powe...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Apple Logo Black

Apple's Next Launch is 'Imminent'

Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models. "All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

Apple Changes How You Order a Mac

Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pros Reportedly Launching Alongside macOS 26.3

Sunday February 1, 2026 5:42 am PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips alongside macOS 26.3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Apple's faster MacBook Pros are planned for the macOS 26.3 release cycle," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter today. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated for the macOS 26.3 software cycle, which runs from...

Top Rated Comments

xxray Avatar
57 months ago
Use Signal
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
@Brett Avatar
57 months ago

Perhaps Apple could develop RCS support using some of the $11 Billion Google pays privacy-minded Apple every year to put its corporate fingers in its ears and pretend Google isn't monetizing Apple's users search queries.
They may pay Apple to be default but I am sure there are Apple users like me who quickly change that to something like Duck Duck Go.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SpringKid Avatar
57 months ago

In Europe, WhatsApp is standard. It's not ideal (Facebook owned), but at least its available on every phone.
As a fellow European, I'm not entirely sure I believe this, unless you have some statistics to back it up with?

I've never used WhatsApp, by the way.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
57 months ago
Perhaps Apple could develop RCS support using some of the $11 Billion Google pays privacy-minded Apple every year to look the other way and pretend Google isn't monetizing Apple users' privacy.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IsaacM Avatar
57 months ago
Americans seem to use "blue chat bubbles" as some sort of class differentiator and a bragging right, so Apple will hold onto that selling point for the foreseeable future.

In Europe, WhatsApp is standard. It's not ideal (Facebook owned), but at least its available on every phone.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jecowa Avatar
57 months ago
I'm only just hearing of RSC, and i don't know anything about it except that i definitely want it on my next phone. SMS is super old. An upgrade sounds great.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)