Google has announced it will soon release the software developer’s kit for its new range of wearable technologies.

Software engineers will be able to begin building apps and other pieces of programming for body-mounted devices in as little as two weeks, according to Google’s senior vice president of Android, Chrome and Apps, Sundar Pichai, at the SXSW conference in Austin.

“In about two weeks, you will see us launch the first SDK for what we think of as Android for wearables,” said Pichai, outlining Google’s vision for the market.

“When we think of wearables, we think of it as a platform. We see a world of sensors... Sensors can be small and powerful, and gather a lot of information that can be useful for users. We want to build the right APIs for this world of sensors.”

Mr Pichai was quizzed at the summit over Google’s Android licensing program, which reportedly forces partners to use specific Google services for full access to core applications.

“Android is one of the most open systems I’ve ever seen. What makes Android great is it’s literally designed from the ground up to be customised in a very powerful way,” said Pichai, hitting back at the claim that Google is too controlling.

“We do have business relationships, we do do licensing relationships and people want to use Google services on top of Android. But in theory you can use Android without Google.

“If you do a licensing arrangement, we do require our services to be installed, but it’s not exclusive – you can preload any other services you want.”

The announcement reiterates wearable technology’s place as the central force behind the next generation of gadgets.

Mr Pichai said he is particularly excited about the potential for the small, powerful sensors to change the way people interact with the software and devices.