What happened
- On October 28, 2026, Google announced the preview of its Connected Apps Platform, a single place for developers to build and manage apps that work inside Search and the Gemini app.
- To take part, each developer integrates their service with a cloud-hosted MCP server or with Android MCP through the AppFunctions APIs, then uses the Google Connected Console to register, test and submit the app.
- Before review, the developer chooses whether the app will be available in Search, the Gemini app or both.
- Once live, the console shows traffic, latency and error rates, and lets developers keep verified logos and authenticated accounts.
Why it matters
- Until now, connected apps were deals between Google and selected partners. The platform turns that closed list into an open application route, though one subject to review.
- TechCrunch compares the shift to SEO: just as websites competed to appear in results, companies could compete to be the action the assistant runs when someone asks for something.
- For a brand, the question is no longer only how to rank a page. It also matters whether an agent can call its service and how fast it responds.
- Because integration runs over MCP, a protocol other assistants also use, the cost of being on several platforms with the same technical work goes down.
The number
More than 50 connected apps. That is how many Google says are live across Search and Gemini, in areas ranging from productivity and ticketing to health and fitness.
Context
Connected apps were introduced in Gemini and Search earlier this year. They let people link an outside service and ask it for specific actions, such as designing a flyer in Canva or building a playlist in YouTube Music. Other companies follow similar ideas: TechCrunch mentions the integrations in ChatGPT and in Meta’s Muse.
Google said integrations with Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton already work in Gemini and will reach Search in the coming weeks. It also announced a new integration with Calm in both products. Localiza, the Brazilian car rental company, is one of the few Latin American partners in the announcement.
According to TechCrunch, the preview is available in beta to developers in the United States. Google says it will open access in phases and add more developers, markets and products over the coming months.
What’s next
- Google gave no dates for other countries and did not detail its app review criteria.
- Documentation and sign-up for the preview are at developers.google.com/connected-apps.
Bottom line
The link between assistants and outside services is being built piece by piece: Google connected Gmail, Calendar and Maps to Gemini in Android Auto, Cloudflare opened 3,000 operations to a console built for agents and MCP already connects sales agents with assistants and in-house data. In advertising, Google unified vertical video buying in DV360 with Gemini.
Sources
- Google — Build and manage Connected Apps in one place (October 28, 2026)
- TechCrunch — As AI agents reshape the web, Google opens Gemini and Search to more apps (October 28, 2026)
- Cover image: Ardo191 at English Wikipedia, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Edited by Rodrigo Cornejo. How we select and verify: who writes these notes.
