Android Development with Compose and Material 3 Expressive

This skill defaults new Android UI to Jetpack Compose and Material 3 Expressive as the design direction, captured as a dated snapshot. The paradigms (declarative UI, state hoisting, unidirectional data flow, Material 3 theming) move slowly. The exact version numbers, the Compose compiler setup, and which Expressive APIs are stable move fast, so those facts are dated and meant to be re-verified.

Snapshot and freshness

• Snapshot date: 2026-06-15 (the date in frontmatter). Targets Compose BOM 2026.06.00 (core Compose 1.11.x, material3 1.4.0), Kotlin 2.4.0, Android 16 / API 36. Each reference file carries its own Verified date.
• Material 3 Expressive is the design direction, not yet a stable API. As of this snapshot the Expressive components live in androidx.compose.material3:material3 1.5.0-alpha behind @ExperimentalMaterial3ExpressiveApi; stable material3 is 1.4.0 (baseline M3). Default to Expressive intent, opt into the experimental APIs explicitly, and fall back to stable baseline M3 where you need stable surface. Re-check whether 1.5.0 has gone stable before assuming it has. See references/material3-expressive.md.
• Check the project's versions first. Read gradle/libs.versions.toml and the module build.gradle.kts for the Compose BOM, material3, Kotlin, AGP, compileSdk/targetSdk. The installed versions decide which APIs and pitfalls apply. Never assume from memory.
• Staleness rule. If today is well past a file's Verified date, or a new Compose BOM / Kotlin / Android major has shipped, treat its version-specific claims (artifact versions, "experimental vs stable", breaking changes) as suspect and confirm against the AndroidX release notes. The paradigm sections age far slower.
• Updating. Confirm against the official docs (developer.android.com, the AndroidX release notes, m3.material.io, kotlinlang.org), refresh the file, and bump its Verified line. Maintainers: see MAINTENANCE.md.

Core Rules