World Emoji Day 2019: Apple, Google Reveal New Emojis Coming Later This Year

Today is the World Emoji Day and to mark the occasion, Apple and Google have revealed their plans to introduce brand-new emoji characters later this year. Apple's new emojis will arrive on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch later this year while Google's new emojis will be available on Android Q. Both companies are bringing around 60 new emojis this year. These new emojis range from improved handholding couple emojis to other interesting new icons.

Apple and Google are improving their handholding couple emojis later this year. You'll be able to use these emojis in multiple skin tone and gender variations. Apple says it will offer up to 75 different combinations based on skin tone and gender choices.

An emoji without any specific gender assigned to it in the Unicode documentation will come with a 'gender-ambiguous design', according to Google. The users can select a male or female variation of more than 53 such emojis once they launch later this year.

Amongst the new emojis, a lot of disability-themed emojis will appear on both Apple and Google operating systems. Apple says it had proposed the new emojis to the Unicode Consortium last year and these were approved earlier this year. These emojis include a service dog, different types of wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs, hearing aids, and others.

Apple has previewed a small number of emojis that are coming later this year
Photo Credit: Apple

The Indian Sari is also a part of the new emojis coming later this year. The new set of emojis also includes a one-piece swimsuit, swim shorts, and safety vests. 

Additional emoji include a new yawning smiley face, food items such as waffle, butter and garlic, falafel, animals like the sloth, flamingo, orangutan, and skunk. Google Pixel phone owners can sign up for the Android Beta program to try out these upcoming emojis ahead of everyone else. Of course, sending these new emojis will be limited to Android Q devices.

Apple says its new emoji designs based on approved characters in Unicode 12.0 will ship this fall via a free software update on iOS, watchOS, and macOS devices.