Let’s get straight to the point: ‘AOS’ is not the official name from Google. It’s a nickname that originated mainly in South Korea, created by users for convenience. So, when, why, and how did this term ‘AOS’ come into use?
1. The Story of AOS : Why and When Did It Start?
1.1 Time of Origin : Estimated to be the early 2010s
The term ‘AOS’ seems to have emerged naturally in the early 2010s, a time when smartphones became mainstream and the competitive landscape between the iPhone (iOS) and Galaxy (Android) was clearly defined. It started appearing in online communities, blogs, and news articles.
While it’s difficult to pinpoint its first use, the prevailing theory is that it was first adopted within the South Korean IT and telecom industries (carriers, manufacturers, etc.) for internal classification and comparison. Terms like “AOS device” or “AOS version” began appearing in planning documents and spec sheets, eventually spreading to the general public.
1.2 Reason for Use : The Convenience of ‘Pairing’ it with iOS
The biggest reason for the creation of the nickname ‘AOS’ was for the convenience of creating symmetry with Apple’s ‘iOS’.
- iOS : iPhone Operating System
- AOS : Android Operating System
Since Apple’s mobile operating system is called ‘iOS’, it felt natural and catchy to call Google’s platform ‘AOS’ as an abbreviation for ‘Android Operating System’. This made comparative phrases like ‘iOS vs. AOS’ easy to say and use. It was also more concise for documentation than writing out ‘Android OS’ every time. 
2. A “Korean-Only” Term
One interesting fact is that ‘AOS’ is not a globally recognized term; it’s used actively and almost exclusively in South Korea. In the English-speaking world, you’ll almost never see Android shortened to ‘AOS.’ The standard terminology is always ‘iOS vs. Android.’ The term ‘AOS’ is more of a conventional name used in Korea and some other parts of East Asia.
💡 Key Points to Remember!
- The Official Name is ‘Android’ : The official name used by Google for its operating system is simply ‘Android.’ While Google sometimes refers to it as the ‘Android OS,’ it never shortens it to ‘AOS.’
- It’s Completely Different from ‘AOSP’ : There is another term, ‘AOSP,’ that looks similar to ‘AOS.’ This stands for the ‘Android Open Source Project,’ which refers to the raw source code of Android that is open for anyone to modify and develop. ‘AOSP’ is an official technical term used by Google and is fundamentally different from the informal nickname ‘AOS,’ so be careful not to confuse the two.
3. Final Summary
- When did it start? The term is estimated to have appeared in the early 2010s.
- Who started it? It began within the Korean IT/telecom industry and spread to the general public.
- Why? It was created for convenience and to create a parallel structure with iOS (iPhone Operating System).
- Conclusion : AOS is an unofficial, Korea-specific nickname. The official name is, and has always been, ‘Android’.
