Developer tools
Android Studio Rabbit 2: Codex, Claude and more AI agents join the IDE
Android Studio Rabbit 2 is stable with support for third-party AI agents, skills management, LeakCanary improvements and XR emulators.
Android developers no longer have to leave Android Studio to work with their preferred coding agent. Google released Android Studio Rabbit 2, version 2026.2.2, to the stable channel on October 28. Its biggest change is Bring Your Own Agent: support for third-party agents including OpenAI Codex and Claude Agent alongside Android Studio's own tools (Google).
The release also adds agent skills management, AI-assisted code review, a LeakCanary integration and stable Android XR emulators. Google announced separate Android CLI and platform features at the same event; not all of them are Android Studio features or available at the same maturity level.
Bring your own coding agent
Bring Your Own Agent, or BYOA, connects compatible coding agents to Android Studio using the open Agent Client Protocol (ACP). Google says developers can choose from more than 40 agents, including Claude Agent, Codex, Junie and Google Antigravity. Supported agents can use IDE tools such as the emulator, build systems and Logcat (Google).
For example, a developer working on a Kotlin app could ask an agent to investigate a build failure with access to the IDE's diagnostics. The agent may suggest changes and use available tools, but the developer still needs to check the patch, rerun relevant tests and decide whether it fixes the actual problem. This example illustrates a possible workflow, not a measured result.
To get started, open the agent window or go to Settings → Tools → AI → Agents, select an agent and authenticate as required. Google says users can authenticate with personal or enterprise subscriptions. Availability, quotas, costs and data handling depend on the agent and provider; Android Studio integration does not make every third-party subscription free (release notes).
Skills, code review and memory leaks
Rabbit 2 adds a skills manager for discovering and managing specialized instructions available to agents. Google cites Android and Firebase skills for work such as migrating XML views to Jetpack Compose, adapting layouts and integrating CameraX. Developers can open the manager from the Agent panel or Settings → Tools → AI → Skills Manager (Google).
AI Change Review can examine agent changes, pending commits or committed changes. Google says it identifies recommended fixes and can produce a walkthrough grouping related changes. That may make a large diff easier to navigate, but it is still an AI-generated review rather than proof that code is correct.
LeakCanary is also integrated with Android Studio's built-in agent in the Profiler. The agent can help explain memory leaks and suggest code changes. That matters for apps that retain resources longer than intended, although a suggested fix still needs profiling and testing on the app.
| Feature | What Google says it does | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| Bring Your Own Agent | Connect compatible agents to IDE tools | Provider terms, permissions and generated changes |
| Skills Manager | Discover and manage specialized agent guidance | Which skills are installed and appropriate |
| AI Change Review | Suggest fixes and group related changes | Correctness, security and test coverage |
| LeakCanary integration | Help explain leaks and suggest fixes | Whether memory behavior actually improves |
| XR emulators | Test supported XR device experiences virtually | Behavior on real hardware when available |
Source: Android Developers Blog, October 28, 2026.
Android XR emulators reach stable
Google says its emulators for XR, audio and display glasses are now stable in Android Studio. Developers can test supported experiences from a computer, customize display-glasses environments with 360-degree photos or a connected camera feed, and use an improved pairing wizard for a virtual phone and glasses (Google).
That gives XR developers another way to iterate without physical glasses for every test. It does not replace validation on actual devices, especially for performance, sensors and real-world usability.
What about Android CLI and new agent APIs?
Google also announced related changes to Android CLI, including device streaming, Jetpack Compose previews and profiling. Official Android plugins for Claude Code and Codex were announced too. These are related Android developer tools, not features that should all be assumed to be part of the Rabbit 2 IDE itself (Google).
The same announcement describes APIs for building agent experiences in Android apps. Their maturity differs: AppFunctions is in beta, while A2UI for Jetpack Compose and the ML Kit Agentic API are in alpha. Developers should check the individual documentation and availability before planning production use.
How to update
Google lists Rabbit 2 as the stable release. In Android Studio, use Help → Check for Updates; on macOS, use Android Studio → Check for Updates. It is also available from the official download page.
Before connecting an external agent, check which files and tools it can access, the provider's data terms and the subscription or API costs. Start with a small task and review its output before handing it a larger refactor.
Our take
Rabbit 2's strongest change is flexibility. Android developers can bring a preferred agent closer to the build, debugging and emulator tools they already use. Skills and guided reviews could also help make agent-generated changes easier to navigate.
The practical test is whether the chosen agent actually resolves problems on your project without creating more review work. Google describes the integration's capabilities; it does not establish a universal productivity gain for every app. Try it against a real build issue, measure the result and keep the checks that matter to your project.
Sources
- Google, Android Studio Rabbit 2 and AI agents, October 28, 2026
- Google, Android Studio Rabbit 2 release notes, checked October 29, 2026
- Google, Android development tools and agent APIs, October 28, 2026
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