Yes, the Rabbit R1 experience can run on an Android phone, but not well nor safely

While AI has been something of a buzzword for a few years now, we seem to be in the golden age of AI-powered devices. We've seen it across almost every Android phone release this year, and that shows absolutely no signs of slowing down.

That's now progressing into the world of sole purpose AI devices. Enter the Rabbit R1. First showcased at CES 2024, the device turned heads right away.

In short, the Rabbit R1 works a little like a phone. However, instead of having a grid full of apps on offer, Rabbit R1 learns how you use your apps, and then can operate them for you. It's a promising concept, which saw a lot of people excited earlier in the year.

Now, as the first few units start to ship to consumers, one notable member of the tech community has gotten hands on with it – and uncovered something really interesting. Mishaal Rahman is a notorious tech insider, and he's managed to get the device's core functionality running on an Android phone.

See, while the device itself utilises a host of different processes to integrate with its hardware, the core software still runs on an Android process. As such, those with the necessary technical know-how can port it over onto another Android device.

Rahman did just that, popping the software onto a Google Pixel 6a handset. While the full extent of the system wasn't tested – in fact, the report suggests some of the features probably wouldn't have worked right away – but they did manage to get the core AI assistant working.

It's worth noting that the Rabbit founder, Jesse Lyu, has responded to the news of this experiment. That statement denies that Rabbit is simply an Android app, and warns users against utilising any third-party emulators on the market.

Still, it's an interesting development. Early adopters of the technology have already had a mixed experience, so we'll certainly be keeping a close eye on further developments.