Google announced the KataOS operating system (OS) for smart devices.
KataOS is at an early exploratory stage, targeting embedded devices on RISC-V chips. The OS runs on top of seL4 and is written almost entirely in Rust. As per the Google team, KataOS is optimised for network-connected embedded systems running ML applications. The KataOS components rely on an augmented version of seL4’s CAmkES framework, an architecture for microkernel-based embedded systems.
KataOS is not Google’s first attempt at penetrating the IoT market with a new OS. Google introduced Brillo, an IoT OS allegedly capable of running on 32MB RAM at Google I/O in 2015. After renaming Brillo to Android Things the following year, Google released the first non-preview version of Android Things, promising three years of updates for every device. In early 2019, Google decided to ‘refocus’ Android Things for OEMs building speakers and displays, giving up on its vision as a general-purpose OS for IoT devices. A couple of years later, Google killed Android Things.
The future of the early-stage KataOS remains unknown. Read more about the announcement and share your thoughts below!