Is OPPO behind Android 16’s best multitasking feature?

Android 16 includes a great split-screen multitasking system, allowing one app to take over 90% of the screen space while the second app occupies the remaining 10%. This is extremely similar to OPPO’s Boundless View and OnePlus’s OpenCanvas multitasking systems. But did OPPO actually donate this feature to Google for Android 16?

OPPO executive Zhu Haizhou claimed on Weibo earlier this week that Android 16’s 90:10 split screen feature was a “small contribution from OPPO” to Google. Check out the machine-translated screenshot below.

However, we asked OPPO to clarify whether it had indeed formally contributed this feature to Google:

The Google ’90:10′ split-screen multitasking feature you mentioned indeed draws inspiration from OPPO’s Boundless View. Boundless View is a productivity-enhancing feature first introduced on the OPPO Find N3 in 2023 and subsequently extended to our bar-style phones, the Find X8 Series, via ColorOS 15 last year. It significantly expands usable screen space and redefines the multitasking experience.

We’re pleased to see that Google has recognized the value of this innovative concept and has now incorporated a similar feature into Android 16.

In other words, OPPO didn’t actually donate this feature to Google for Android 16, and it’s merely a “similar feature.” This isn’t a surprise, though, as Google has long grabbed features innovated by OEMs and included them in stock Android.

Regardless of the feature’s origins, we’re glad to see Google bringing a much-loved OPPO and OnePlus feature to stock Android. This opens the door for loads of other brands to adopt this novel multitasking option. In fact, Samsung has already adopted it in the One UI 8 beta on the Galaxy S25 series.

We also praised Open Canvas on the OnePlus Open foldable for its ability to flexibly run three apps in split-view mode, and it looks like this option could also come to tablets and foldables running Android 16. So we look forward to the Galaxy Z Fold 7 launch as it’s expected to run Android 16 out of the box.