Earlier this year, Google began rolling out connected apps in Gemini and Google Search, allowing users to securely link third-party services and take actions without leaving the AI experience. A user could ask Canva to create a flyer or have YouTube Music assemble a playlist, illustrating Google’s larger wager: the familiar standalone app may no longer be the primary front door to a service.¹

That wager is now moving into public beta. Google’s Connected Apps Platform lets U.S. developers register, test and submit integrations for Gemini, Search or both. Developers can connect through a cloud-hosted Model Context Protocol server or Android MCP using AppFunctions APIs, then use Google’s Connected Console to manage the submission process.¹

The company is also offering businesses a more practical incentive than mere placement. Once an app is live, developers can monitor traffic, latency and error rates while retaining verified logos and authenticated accounts. The pitch resembles an early blueprint for visibility in an “agentic web,” much as search-engine optimization became essential when web search governed discovery.¹

Google is not starting from zero. Gemini already has more than 50 connected apps, including integrations from Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton, alongside Google services such as Workspace, Photos, YouTube Music and Google Home. Those apps are due to reach Search in the coming weeks; Calm is among the new partners expected to launch across both products.¹

A second account underscores the immediate developer proposition: the beta will enable integrations like those already built by OpenTable and Instacart, while providing performance metrics including traffic and latency.² The preview is available via a U.S. waitlist, and Google has not said when the platform will expand more broadly.¹