Google enables Android-to-iPhone sharing via AirDrop with Quick Share on Pixel 10. Send photos and files both ways, with Rust-hardened security and easy setup.
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Google has finally done what many have been waiting for: Android can now share files directly with an iPhone via AirDrop. The first phone to get the feature is the Pixel 10, and it feels like a step toward a more open mobile ecosystem. Quick Share now detects AirDrop targets when the iPhone has the Everyone for 10 Minutes setting enabled. The iPhone shows up among available recipients—tap it, send a photo or document, and the iPhone’s owner approves the transfer. It works the other way, too.
What stands out most is how natural it feels. The flow is the same as any routine send—only now the person next to you doesn’t need the same brand of device. For years, moving files between Android and iPhone was a headache: messengers crushed quality, third-party tools were sluggish, and AirDrop stayed locked inside Apple’s walls. This update underlines what people actually want: simplicity and real compatibility, not another ecosystem standoff. The trajectory is hard to miss as well—just recall RCS on iPhone or WhatsApp’s multi-device support.
Google also put security front and center. The transfer channel is built with Rust, a language that resists many common classes of vulnerabilities. On top of that, Android layers its system protections and Play Protect, while the iPhone adds isolation and its own file processing. Google brought in NetSPI for an independent audit, which affirmed the security of the implementation.
Turning the feature on with a Pixel 10 is straightforward: update the Quick Share Extension module in settings and restart the phone. AirDrop support appears automatically after that.
Google says it didn’t collaborate with Apple on development but is open to working together—especially to enable the Contacts Only mode in AirDrop. If that happens, the handoff would feel even more seamless. For now, support is limited to the Pixel 10, with other Android devices to follow. And after a single try, going without it is a tough sell.