Amazon Fire TV devices expected to ditch Android for Linux in 2025

Amazon is gearing up to transition its Fire TV devices from Android to a proprietary Linux-based operating system, a move anticipated for 2025. This shift follows the discovery of a job posting that alludes to the company's plans to implement its own OS, known internally as Vega OS, across its Fire TV lineup. Currently, many of Amazon's Fire-branded devices, including tablets, operate on Fire OS, which is built on an older version of the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). This reliance has often led to Amazon's products lagging in software updates, as seen with the recent Fire HD 8 tablet, which was released with Fire OS 8 based on Android 11 from 2020. Some devices, like the Echo Hub, Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen), and Echo Spot, already utilize the Linux 5.16 kernel for their operating systems, although Amazon has not formally acknowledged the existence of Vega OS until now. The recent job listing, which was highlighted by Lowpass journalist Janko Roettgers, seeks a software development manager for the “Prime Video Fire TV” team, indicating that the new OS will enhance the Prime Video app experience on Fire TV. As excitement builds, the job ad suggests that the selected manager will play a crucial role in shaping both the product and team culture ahead of the anticipated launch in 2025. Interestingly, after Roettgers inquired about the listing, Amazon edited the job post to remove references to Vega OS, yet the company has remained silent on the matter since then.