Google Opens Gemini and Search to Outside Apps With New Platform

Google has opened its AI surfaces to outside developers with a new Connected Apps Platform, and it already carries more than 50 live apps from partners including Adobe, Experian, Peloton and Localiza.

The platform, announced as a public preview, lets any business or developer submit apps that users can connect to and act on inside Gemini and Google Search. A user could link Canva to design a flyer, or YouTube Music to build a playlist, without leaving Google's AI experiences.

Connected apps first appeared in Gemini and Search earlier this year. The premise mirrors moves by other consumer AI services, including ChatGPT and Meta's Muse: integrations like these could shift consumer behavior away from launching individual apps toward using services through a preferred AI provider.

What does the new platform actually give developers?

Google's pitch is simple: open the doors to any business that wants to reach users through Search or Gemini. Developers can submit their own connected apps and monitor their performance after launch.

The technical path runs through two pieces. Developers integrate with a cloud-hosted MCP (Model Context Protocol) server or Android MCP using the AppFunctions APIs. They then use the Google Connected Console to register, test, and submit their app, Google explains.

Developers choose where their app lives: Search, the Gemini app, or both. Once live, they can track traffic, latency and error rates, and keep control over their brand identity — verified logos and authenticated accounts included.

The preview is currently in beta for developers in the U.S. who sign up for the waitlist. Google did not say when it would become more broadly available.

In short: any U.S. developer can now build for Google's AI surfaces, with analytics and brand controls built in.

Which apps are already connected?

Gemini already hosts more than 50 Connected Apps. The list spans Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton, alongside Google's own services — Workspace, Photos, YouTube Music and Google Home.

Search, by comparison, has fewer integrations today. Its current roster includes Instacart, Canva, YouTube Music and Yahoo Fantasy Football, among others.

Google said the Gemini connected apps will roll out to Search "over the next few weeks," closing the gap between the two surfaces.

One new partner is also on board: meditation app Calm. Google said Calm's app will soon launch on both Gemini and Search.

The takeaway: Google's ecosystem already has real breadth, and Search is about to inherit it.

Why does this matter beyond Google?

The parallel Google itself invites is SEO. Just as search engine optimization let companies and websites climb search rankings, connected apps could become one of the first levers for businesses seeking visibility on what's being called the agentic web — a web where AI agents, not app icons, are the entry point.

The stakes sit with attention. To capture and retain consumers on AI surfaces, there have to be a wide range of connected apps to explore. A catalog of 50-plus is a start; an open platform that any developer can join is the mechanism to scale it.

The catch, for now, is geography and access. The preview is U.S.-only, waitlisted, and undated for general availability — so the agentic-web land grab is open, but only to those already at the front of the line.