> I remember many years ago when a few carrier and chipset execs stood up on Google I/O stage and announced a new program to ensure Android devices get updated quicker. Nothing came out of that
Google remembers that too, and this change allows Google to bypass those same execs when pushing out updates. The HAL layer will not change from version to version, meaning no driver support will be required from the OEM for new Android versions.
They were supposed to not put any user app on the system partition but rather install them using play services when the user logs in. I've only seen one device implement it and it was a low end device so it kind of choked anyway.
