Gboard for Android gets an upgrade: What has changed?
15 Feb 2026

Google has introduced a new quality-of-life improvement in its Gboard app for Android.

The feature, dubbed "auto-switch after apostrophes," is aimed at making typing more efficient.

It automatically switches back to the letter keyboard after an apostrophe, saving users from having to manually press the space bar or use the ?'123' key on their keyboards.

How to disable the new feature
User convenience

The new feature, which is enabled by default, allows users to quickly finish a possessive noun or contraction.

The update was widely rolled out to stable users (version 16.7) in the past week.

If you want to disable it, you can do so from Settings > Preferences > Shortcuts on your Gboard app.

Material 3 expressive redesign
Visual update

Along with the new feature, Google has also rolled out a visual update for Gboard.

The Material 3 Expressive redesign was introduced in version 16.5 of the app on the stable channel.

It uses containers to group related menus on the main list, and individual pages have also been updated as part of this modernization effort.

Other updates in the pipeline
Upcoming changes

In addition to these updates, Google is testing a redesign of the shortcuts page in Gboard.

The company is also experimenting with rounded keys as part of its ongoing efforts to improve user experience.

These changes are currently being tested on the beta channel (version 16.6) and are not yet widely available for testers.