[Update: Official Response] OnePlus ends device seeding program for custom ROM and kernel developers

Update 11/29/18: A spokesperson from OnePlus’ PR agency in India has reached out to us with an official statement clarifying the matter. Skip to the end for the update. The original article follows.

OnePlus is one of the most developer friendly device makers because they make kernel source code available on time (day 1 for both the OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T) and allow for easily unlocking the bootloader of their devices. For years, the company has gone above and beyond in supporting the custom development community via their developer program. The company sends devices to a handful of developers to kickstart development of custom ROMs and kernels on the latest OnePlus flagship. OnePlus usually doesn’t talk about the program apart from the occasional tweet, but this year’s OnePlus 6 development program was much more public. Unfortunately, it looks like the days of developers receiving OnePlus devices for custom ROM and kernel development are over. The OnePlus representative in charge of developer relations today announced the closure of the device seeding program.

A screenshot of the announcement made in OnePlus’ Slack group for developers. This screenshot was sent to XDA by a member of the group which, before its closure, had approximately 30 developers in it. With the Slack group no longer there, the developers no longer have direct communication with OnePlus staff.

Through the device seeding program, developers like franciscofranco received several OnePlus devices to work on. franciscofranco states he received a OnePlus 2, OnePlus X, OnePlus 3, OnePlus 3T, OnePlus 5, OnePlus 5T, and OnePlus 6 via the program. Other kernel developers like arter97, flar2, joshuous, and eng.stk also received several devices thanks to the program. Developments like LineageOS, CarbonROM, TWRP, and more were made available fairly quickly on OnePlus devices thanks to devices being sent to key developers from each team. OnePlus devices are still popular among Android enthusiasts, but increased competition from Xiaomi and the allure of the latest Google Pixel may pull some developers away from the OnePlus brand.

The shuttering of the device seeding program may deal a major blow to the health of the fledgling custom development community for the new OnePlus 6T, though the latest OnePlus flagship’s similarities to the OnePlus 6 will help the OnePlus 6T community piggyback off the work done for the OnePlus 6. The next generation OnePlus 7, though, may suffer from a drop in custom development when compared to older OnePlus devices. We expect the OnePlus 7 to feature the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset and since it’ll be the first OnePlus device on that platform, prospective OnePlus 7 users won’t have the development community of another device to piggyback off of. We don’t expect OnePlus to go the route of Huawei by delaying kernel source code releases and locking down bootloader unlocking, at least. Developers may still choose to buy the OnePlus 6T or OnePlus 7 to work on, but many developers on our forums are full-time students who can’t afford to shell out hundreds of dollars every 6 months for the latest flagship.

Lastly, closing down the device seeding program may result in some bugs and security vulnerabilities going undiscovered. A developer on our forums discovered a vulnerability with the OnePlus 6’s bootloader that was promptly fixed after it was disclosed. We have privately received reports from developers on various software bugs and vulnerabilities they discovered on OnePlus devices, and we’ve helped these developers send their findings to OnePlus to be fixed. With fewer developers having access to the latest OnePlus device, there’s a chance that nobody finds some of these bugs. XDA Recognized Developer topjohnwu recently discovered an issue that affects many Android devices, but only because he started by debugging an issue he found on his OnePlus 6.

We’re thankful for the generosity that OnePlus has shown towards the development community all these years. The company is under no obligation to seed devices to developers, but they’ve done so for years without much fanfare. The device seeding program successfully fostered a healthy development community around the OnePlus 2, OnePlus X, OnePlus 3, OnePlus 3T, OnePlus 5, OnePlus 5T, and OnePlus 6. Each of these devices has nearly stable AOSP-based Android Pie ports thanks to the work of developers on our forums. We’re hopeful that the OnePlus 6T, and eventually the OnePlus 7, will have plenty of custom ROMs and kernels available for users even if OnePlus is no longer sending devices to developers.

Update: OnePlus’ Response

OnePlus has sent us a statement clarifying what’ll happen to the developer program. Here’s what they said:

“Apologies, we weren’t as clear as we could have been. We’ve temporarily scaled back our developer program while we work out how to make it even better in the future. We’ll be updating the selection criteria and communication channels with developers in our seeding program for better co-operation. We will restart the program and select Devs based on the new criteria and will work on providing the best possible support to community development efforts for OnePlus devices.” – OnePlus Spokesperson

We will reach out to our contacts at OnePlus to learn more about this new arrangement.