Nova Launcher Founder Departs After Open Source Plan Stalled

Nova Launcher founder departs amid stalled open-source push

In a development rocking the Android customization community, Kevin Barry — the founder and last active developer of Nova Launcher — has left the app’s parent company after being told to stop working on the launcher and on a plan to open-source it.

Nova, one of the most recognizable third-party Android launchers, was acquired by Branch Metrics in 2022. At the time, then-CEO Alex Austin said on Reddit that if Barry were to leave, "it’s contracted that the code will be open-sourced and put in the hands of the community." Austin left Branch in 2023.

This weekend The Verge reported that Barry was asked to stop his open-source work and has now departed the company. Nova’s website currently returns a 404, though the app remains available on Google Play. Barry declined to comment for the report, and Branch has yet to provide a public response.

Former Nova customer relations lead Cliff Wade, who left during 2024 layoffs, told The Verge that newer Branch leadership no longer prioritizes Nova and that he doubts the company will follow through on open-sourcing without community pressure. Users have launched a change.org petition urging Branch to release the code.

Why this matters: Nova has a passionate user base and a long history in Android customization. When an app with strong community demand enters an ownership limbo — with conflicting statements about open-sourcing and leadership turnover — users, contributors, and downstream integrators face uncertainty around maintenance, security updates, and long-term viability.

The situation raises common questions organizations face when product stewardship changes hands: Are there enforceable contractual obligations to release source? Who controls trademarks and distribution? How does the community pick up maintenance without high friction?

Practical steps for owners and communities

• Audit contracts and IP to verify any open-source obligations and clarify what can be released.
• Prepare a technical handover: document build processes, dependency trees, signing keys, and CI pipelines so community maintainers can step in safely.
• Define governance and contribution rules before releasing code to avoid fork fragmentation and to set clear maintainer roles.
• Plan continuity: consider security patching, signing and store release procedures, and a communication plan for users.

For companies and stewards, Nova’s story is a cautionary tale: acquisitions and leadership changes can derail explicit or implicit expectations. For communities, it’s a reminder that collective pressure and organized readiness — petitions, maintainers, and documented build systems — are often necessary to reclaim a project.

QuarkyByte’s approach is to combine legal-risk analysis with technical readiness planning. When projects face ambiguous ownership, we map contractual obligations, inventory code and signing assets, and build a community onboarding playbook so transitions protect users and preserve technical value.

Whether Branch honors prior statements about open-sourcing Nova remains to be seen. For now, users and developers are left with a product that still works but lacks a clear custodial future — and with a community mobilizing to try to change that outcome.