Google opens Gemini and Search to outside developers through one Connected Apps platform

Google launched a preview of its Connected Apps Platform on October 28, a single route for outside developers to build apps that work inside both Google Search and the Gemini app, the company said in a blog post. Google said it has launched more than 50 connected apps across the two products.

What happened

The platform is aimed at app developers rather than users. Google said developers integrate with a cloud-hosted MCP server, or with Android MCP using the AppFunctions APIs, and then use the Google Connected Console to register, test and submit an app. Before review, developers choose whether the app goes live in Search, the Gemini app, or both.

Once an app is live, Google said, developers can track traffic, latency and error rates, and keep control of their brand identity, including verified logos and authenticated accounts. The company said it is opening access in phases and will add more developers, markets and Google products over the coming months. It did not give a date for wider availability in the post.

The post was written by Chips Mistry, Group Product Manager for Search, and Mai Lowe, Group Product Manager for the Gemini app.

The partners

Google named Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton as partners whose integrations are live for users in Gemini. It said it will bring those connected apps to Search in the coming weeks. It also said it is launching an integration with Calm across both Search and Gemini.

The company said the more than 50 connected apps cover areas ranging from productivity and event ticketing to health and fitness.

The background

Connected apps in the Gemini app came first. In a July 16, 2026 post, Google said that "you can already connect some of your favorite services to the Gemini app" and that it was now enabling connections in Search. It said the Search feature was starting to roll out in AI Mode in the U.S., and gave Instacart, Canva and YouTube Music as examples: a user could add ingredients to an Instacart cart, ask Canva for template options or save a playlist to YouTube Music from the search page.

Google's May 19 announcement for the Gemini app put the scale of that product at "more than 900 million people across 230 countries and more than 70 languages" each month, up from 400 million users a year earlier at Google I/O. In the same post Google announced MCP connections to Canva, OpenTable and Instacart, and described Gemini Spark, a cloud-based agent that it said is designed to ask users first before high-stakes actions such as spending money or sending emails.

What to watch

Google said it will add developers, markets and Google products over the coming months, and that the existing connected apps from Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton will reach Search in the coming weeks. The post gives no schedule beyond that,; it does not address fees or how apps will be shown to users.