Summary
If you love being the first to try new Google Messages features, the beta program is a great way to do it. However, the price to pay for getting early access means dealing withthe occasional bug. The latest one is giving people a case of double vision—sometimes eventriplevision.
The most recent Google Messages beta has a bug that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. Multiple users have been reporting an issue that’s causing the app to show up more than once in the app drawer. People go to open the Messages app, and instead of seeing a single app icon, they see a second or third identical one right next to it. The icons function the same, but this is obviously not intended behavior.
The problem seems to stem specifically from the latest beta update, version v20250811. For some reason, an extra “launcher intent filter” was added to another activity within the app. This is the technical reason you’re now seeing double. And if you tried to fix the problem by uninstalling and reinstalling the app, you’ll see three icons appear. Honestly, it’s a pretty funny bug. You try to kill one icon, and two more appear in its place. When did Hydra replace Google?
I happen to be a member of the Google Message beta program as well, so I looked into this a bit more. I useLawnchairas my home screen launcher, and I did not see the double icons at first. However, when I switched to the Pixel Launcher, the double icons were present in the app drawer. And then they appeared in Lawnchair when I switched back. So, you may not see this bug immediately if you’re on the beta.
Of course, this is a good reminder of why the beta program exists—and what it’s really like to use a beta app. You’re helping to catch these kinds of quirky glitches before they make their way to millions of people on the stable version. Google will almost certainly get this sorted out in the next beta update. Until then, you’re able to just enjoy having more app icons to touch.
