Native Android Runtime Debugging

Use this skill when the core problem is not app architecture or visual design, but runtime truth: did the current APK/AAB build, install, launch, and render on the intended emulator or device — and, once that's proven, why is it slow, freezing, or leaking memory?

This skill owns stale-build suspicion, emulator drift, malformed APKs, ADB failures, Gradle cache corruption, ProGuard/R8 stripping, Compose recomposition issues, ANR/jank/memory/startup performance triage, and the proof loop required before trusting screenshots, UI behavior, or downstream API/auth debugging.

Platform Currency (as of 2026-07-11)

• Android 17 (API 37) shipped 2026-06-16; Android 16 (API 36) is the prior release. Verify at developer.android.com/about/versions before citing a specific version as latest — this changes roughly annually.
• Google Play target API policy: new apps and app updates must target API level 36 (Android 16) or higher as of the 2026-08-31 deadline, with a one-time extension to 2026-11-01 available by request. Re-verify at developer.android.com/google/play/requirements/target-sdk rather than hardcoding a number.
• 16KB page-size support is mandatory for app updates shipping native (.so) libraries as of 2026-05-01. An app whose ELF LOAD segments are still 4KB-aligned runs in a 16KB backcompat mode; test on a 16KB-page-size emulator image, not just the default. Verify current enforcement at developer.android.com/guide/practices/page-sizes.
• AGP 9.x is the current stable Android Gradle Plugin series (crossed the 9.0 major boundary in early 2026); it raises the minimum Gradle version and enables built-in Kotlin support by default. Verify current minimums at developer.android.com/build/releases/gradle-plugin-roadmap before assuming an AGP-8-era Gradle wrapper still works.
• Android Studio current stable is the Quail series (2026.1.x); the prior Otter series (2025.2.x) is now legacy. Verify the live release name/version at developer.android.com/studio/releases — Google renames each yearly series and this drifts within months.
• Perfetto, not Systrace, is the current system- and app-tracing stack; Systrace is retired. See references/performance-triage.md.

Quick Reference