Google Connected Apps Platform Opens Gemini and Search
Key Takeaways
- Google launched a Connected Apps Platform preview on October 28, 2026, giving developers one place to build and manage apps for Search and the Gemini app.
- The preview is in beta for developers in the United States, via a waitlist; Google gave no date for broader availability.
- Developers integrate with a cloud-hosted MCP server or Android MCP using AppFunctions APIs, then register, test and submit via the Google Connected Console.
- Developers choose whether an app goes live in Search, the Gemini app, or both, and can track traffic, latency and error rates once live.
- More than 50 connected apps are already available in Gemini, with Search rollout over the coming weeks; Calm is a new partner launching on both.
Google has opened its AI surfaces to outside developers in a more systematic way. On October 28, 2026, the company launched a preview of its Connected Apps Platform, a single place for developers to build and manage apps that work inside Search and the Gemini app. The move matters because it determines which services users can reach without leaving Google’s AI experiences — and which businesses get discovered there.
Connected apps themselves are not new. They were introduced in Gemini and Google Search earlier in 2026, letting users link third-party services and take specific actions, such as designing a flyer in Canva or building a playlist in YouTube Music. What is new is the platform around them: a standard way for any business or developer to submit an app, monitor its performance and maintain control of its brand identity, including verified logos and authenticated accounts.
How a developer builds a connected app
The workflow has three stages. First, developers integrate with a cloud-hosted MCP (Model Context Protocol) server or Android MCP using the AppFunctions APIs. MCP is the protocol that lets an AI system call outside tools in a structured way; AppFunctions is Google’s way of exposing an Android app’s capabilities to that system. Second, developers use the Google Connected Console to register, test and submit the app. Third, before review, they choose whether it will go live in Search, the Gemini app, or both.
Once an app is live, developers can track traffic, latency and error rates. Those three metrics are the practical core of the platform: traffic shows whether users are finding the app, latency shows whether it responds fast enough inside an AI conversation, and error rates show whether it breaks. For a business, that visibility is the difference between being listed in an AI experience and being able to run a reliable service inside it.
Access is phased. Google said it is opening access in phases and will add more developers, markets and Google products over the coming months. The preview is currently available in beta to developers in the United States who sign up for the waitlist, and Google did not share when it would become more broadly available. Developers outside the United States should therefore treat this as a waitlist announcement, not as immediate access.
What users get, and what is already live
Google said it has launched more than 50 connected apps between Search and Gemini, in areas ranging from productivity and event ticketing to health and fitness. Integrations with partners such as Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton are live for users in Gemini, and Google said it will bring those connected apps to Search over the coming weeks. A new integration with Calm will launch across both Search and Gemini.
Search today has fewer integrations, featuring apps such as Instacart, Canva, YouTube Music and Yahoo Fantasy Football. That gap between Gemini and Search is worth noting: an app that is live in Gemini is not automatically live in Search, and the developer’s choice of surface matters for who sees it. The coming-weeks rollout to Search is the next milestone to watch, along with which partners actually appear there.
The strategic context is the shift toward agentic interfaces, where users ask an AI assistant to do something rather than opening individual apps. Similar ideas are being pursued by other consumer AI services, and Google’s bet is that a wide range of connected apps will keep users inside Search and Gemini. Whether that bet pays off depends less on the platform’s existence than on whether enough useful apps arrive, and whether they work reliably inside a conversation.
What this means for developers and businesses
For developers, the platform is best understood as a new distribution and visibility channel, comparable in spirit to how search rankings once determined which businesses were found. An app that works well inside Gemini or Search may reach users at the moment they state a need, rather than waiting for them to open the app. That is a powerful position, but it also creates dependence: the business’s visibility now depends on Google’s review, ranking and surface choices.
For users, the benefit is convenience, with a trade-off. Linking services into one AI experience makes everyday tasks faster, but it also concentrates more activity inside Google’s products and raises questions about which services are surfaced, how data flows between them, and how easily a user can switch. Google’s emphasis on verified logos and authenticated accounts is a partial answer to the trust question, but it does not settle the competition question.
The agent angle connects to other work on the site. Google’s Genie 4 world model shows how interactive AI is moving beyond text, while GPT-6.1 Terra’s computer work illustrates how AI systems are increasingly expected to take actions, not just answer questions. Connected apps are Google’s version of that same shift, applied to third-party services.
Limitations and unanswered questions
Several facts remain open. No broader-availability date was given, and no details were provided about review criteria, fees, revenue sharing or ranking inside Search and Gemini. The “more than 50 apps” figure is Google’s count across both surfaces, not a per-surface breakdown, and the Search rollout is described only as “over the coming weeks”. Developers should not assume that joining the waitlist guarantees approval, nor that an app approved for Gemini will automatically appear in Search.
