Android 17 is getting redesigned emoji, and Google is clearly never bringing back the blobs [Gallery]

Ben Schoon | May 12 2026 - 10:03 am PT

Google is introducing a new collection of emoji in Android 17 that delivers 3D textures for the entire catalog of emoji in Android and other Google products, but it’s abundantly clear that the beloved blobs are never coming back.

Available “starting with Pixel phones later this year,” Google’s emoji library is getting a complete redesign – or, “refresh” at least. This latest collection is referred to as “3D emoji,” with added depth effects to the existing designs.

These aren’t exactly a major overhaul, but everything is clearly looking a fair bit different in this new look. There’s a lot more depth and less of a cartoon-y design here. Frankly, it looks a lot more like the emoji found on iPhone and Samsung devices compared to what Google has been using for years now.

Google explains:

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The way we communicate is constantly evolving, and our emoji reflect that. From our beloved innocent blob emoji of the 2010s to Noto 3D, the new emoji collection we announced today, emoji are the universal language of our digital lives and they’ve never felt more alive.

Our feelings have weight, but they often fall flat when expressed online. These 3D emoji bring a touch of physicality to these moments and help you overcome this digital divide. It’s the difference between a message received and a presence felt. Available across Google, starting with Pixel phones later this year.

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of the existing emoji set versus the redesign, and we’ve broken out a few individual examples below too:

On the one hand, a positive from Google’s altered designs is that they feel a lot more like iOS and, in turn, will probably make it a tiny bit easier to translate emoji design from one platform to the other.

On the other hand, we continue to stray further from the beloved blobs.

Google readily acknowledges how much we loved the blob emoji set, but goes on to talk about how “our feelings have weight, but they often fall flat when expressed online,” as if the blobs weren’t one of the most expressive forms of emoji design. I, for one, continue to miss them and wish Google would go back but, with this latest news, it’s obvious that the hidden blob stickers in Emoji Kitchen are the closest we’re ever going to get.